


Ode To My Family

by odessasbluecoat



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:28:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 26,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24524641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/odessasbluecoat/pseuds/odessasbluecoat
Summary: Lex is dead and Kara's secret has been revealed. Naturally, Lena shuts everyone out and buries herself in work.When suddenly a letter from Lex falls down her doormat to reveal her biological mother's name, Lena's pulled into yet another dark secret.Finally, Lena discovers what really happened to her mother and she starts to feel hope again. However, things are never easy.
Relationships: Kara Danvers & Lena Luthor, Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 53
Kudos: 419





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i suck at writing summaries, but honestly i didn't want to reveal too much?  
> anyways, i was supposed to be working on something else. but this idea wouldn't leave me alone. and it sort of started writing itself?  
> honestly, my imagination just went wild with this one. btw I'm not a doctor nor an engineer in the slightest so please just humour me.  
> yes, i love drama, and i might've listened to a eurovision playlist while writing this. sue me.
> 
> English is not my first language so apologies for any mistakes.
> 
> anyways, stay healthy and enjoy xxx

It shouldn’t have come as a surprise, really. Lena should’ve known that even death wouldn’t stop her brother from messing with her head and playing some deranged psychological games with her. She’s tired. _Oh god, is she tired._ After everything that’s happened, Kara’s lies, the trigger Lena pulled to put an end to her own brother’s manipulative mind games. She’s absolutely exhausted.

He’s dead, but of course, it’s far from over.

It was a regular night. Lena spent most of her time at L-Corp, burying herself in whatever work she could get her hands on. If she isn’t in her office, she’s keeping herself busy with experiments in her private lab. She wasn’t even planning on going home, really, she could’ve just crashed on the couch in her office. However, she realized she can’t possibly go to work in the same outfit _again_ the next morning, she’d already noticed a few concerned looks shot her way from employees.

So maybe she hasn’t been home in two days. Her large penthouse feels cold and more unwelcome than ever when she flicks the light on. Lena moves to hang her coat on the rack when her heel digs into a white envelope on the floor. Lena frowns and leans forward to pick it up. When she turns the envelope around to reveal the backside, her body freezes.

_My dear sister_

Lena swallows thickly and closes her eyes, already feeling an enormous migraine coming up. With the rhythmic clacking of her heels onto the ceramic tiles, she walks over to her kitchen and flings the envelope on top of the counter. Instantly, Lena approaches her liquor cabinet and pulls a bottle of whiskey out. Masterfully, she removes the cap with a flick of her thumb and pours herself a glass. She eyes the envelope when she downs her drink, wishing she could just pretend it didn’t exist, that the handwriting didn’t look awfully familiar to her.

Loudly, Lena puts her glass on the counter and takes a deep shaky breath, trying to mentally prepare herself for what’s to come. Lena grabs the envelope again and rips it open. She throws the remnants of the envelope away and unfolds the parchment inside.

_My dear sister,_

_Did cancer finally get the better of me? Or did I meet my fate differently? Either way, if you receive this letter I must be dead. I’m sure you’re mourning me, sister, you’ve always been too emotional for your own good._

Lena shivers, almost hearing her brother’s voice through the written words. Her eyes widen when she reads on.

_Now, I can’t leave this world without dropping one last bomb, can I? I’m giving you a name, Alodie Byrne, the rest you’ll have to find out yourself. Which, I know you will._

_Don’t say I never gave you anything, Lena. And don’t say our father never made any effort._

_Lex._

Lena stares at the parchment for a moment and two words in particular. _Alodie Byrne._ It’s her mother, it has to be. But why would Lex bother giving her the name of her dead mother after all this time?

Lena moves towards her couch and grabs her laptop, which was still on sleep-mode. She presses a random button to activate it and types away, searching on various combinations of the woman’s name with events, locations, dates… And absolutely nothing comes up. It’s as if the woman’s entire life has been erased. Only a few Facebook accounts from strangers pop up who happen to share the same name.

She didn’t expect to get any results. It would’ve been way too easy. No, they’ve obviously made sure not to leave a single trace of her existence.

Lena sits back and puts her cold hand flat against her forehead, easing the aching sensation a little. She sighs and closes her eyes, thinking as deeply as her exhausted brain allows her.

After a moment, Lena’s eyes snap open again and her fingers rapidly tap away on her keyboard. She can’t hack a ghost, but she can in fact access her father’s files from L-Corp. Within a minute, she’s in, her eyes searching and scanning through the familiar database. Lena scrolls through her father’s old projects and experiments. Some of them date back ten years, twenty even. Lena eyebrows shoot up.

_07-06-1997 Patient AB_

Lena’s heart skips a beat. 1997 is the year, the year her entire life changed. It’s the year her mother died.

With a shaky hand, Lena clicks on the entry.

_08-06-1997 Patient AB_

_Entry #1_

_Traumatic head injury. Hypoxemia from near-drowning. Is kept in a medically induced coma. Has yet to show any progress. Chances of a full recovery are slim._

Lena stops breathing. _Did Lionel take her mother to L-Corp instead of a hospital? But more importantly: did she- did she survive?_

She reads through the entries all night, not even noticing the hours ticking by or the light outside changing. Her bloodshot eyes flicker across the words on the screen, eventually she reaches entry #763 and she stills when she realizes it doesn’t go further. It’s the last entry, three years after the incident at the beach.

_11-10-2000 Patient AB_

_Entry #763_

_I’ve concluded the treatment, without results. She barely talks and when she does, it doesn’t seem like she recognizes me. I don’t see her improving any time soon. I have to let her go. For everyone’s sake. It’s time to move on. I’ll have her transferred to St. Mary’s Mental Institution tomorrow._

Lena’s heart is pounding wildly. Her father’s words are heart-breaking. _But she might still be alive…_

Barely a minute passes by before Lena has found the institution’s full address and visiting hours. She shoots off a quick message to her assistant saying she won’t be in tomorrow, _today_ actually, Lena realizes when she notices the time on her phone. She sighs and throws her phone on the couch next to her before giving in to her body’s wishes and moving towards her large bed for a well-needed nap. She falls asleep as soon as her head hits the pillow and doesn’t open her eyes until it’s well after noon.

* * *

_Fuck._ Lena flutters with her eyes, willing the headache away. At this point she’s not even sure what causes her migraines anymore, they’re just always there like a constant companion.

Lena forces herself out of bed and enters the bathroom for a quick shower. It’s going to be a very long day.

She takes a deep breath before turning the key in the ignition. According to Maps, it’s only a three hour drive. For three hours and twenty minutes straight, she stopped to grab a bite once she realized she hadn’t eaten since the morning before, it’s completely silent in the car. She doesn’t even bother putting her usual playlist on, her brain keeps reciting the entries and Lena’s almost sure she knows them all by heart by now.

Eventually, she reaches the large grey building that marked her destination. It stands tall against the clouds and Lena shivers just thinking about living there. It reminds her of the Luthor Estate and how she felt that very first day. She’d felt so small and alone, so absolutely terrified. Those exact same feelings are weighing down on her shoulders all over again.

She parks her car in a visitor’s parking spot and walks through the large uninviting doors. She’s met with a reception counter and an older woman, named Corrie according to her nametag, behind an outdated computer. It’s clear that the building hasn’t seen an update since the early 2000’s.

“Name?” Corrie asks, without looking away from her screen. She absentmindedly hands Lena a clipboard with a pen attached. Lena raises an eyebrow, but writes her name in the next available blank space. When she’s done, Corrie takes the clipboard back and glances down at it.

“Lena Byrne? Alodie family of yours?” Corrie squints up at her. “Actually, I can see the resemblance.” She adds with a somewhat friendly smile.

Lena silently stares at her, the joy she feels at the realisation that her mother is in fact still alive rushes through her body. She realizes it’s probably better not to reveal too much and slips her well-practiced mask back on.

“Where can I find her?” Lena asks instead.

“Room 53, just down the hallway. Oh, and take this. Just clip it on.” Corrie hands her a red badge with a large V on it, before turning back towards her screen.

Lena blankly looks at the badge in her hand before attaching it to her coat.

“Thank you.” Lena offers quietly, already looking towards the long white hallway on her right. Her heels click against the tiles, making a couple of surprised heads turn in her wake. She spots room number 33, 40, 50… Lena rounds a corner and halts her step when she reaches the door she’s been looking for. Room 53. With a shaky hand, Lena knocks on the wooden door and exhales deeply before slowly pushing it open.

The room is as bland as the hallway, all white with a few hideous abstract paintings hanging on the walls. It’s small, but it appears to have everything a person could need. A lone chair is placed in the middle of the room, with its back to the door. Dark, greying hair is the first thing Lena sees of her. _Her mother_. Carefully, Lena approaches the chair and walks around to finally face her. She’s met with green eyes, much like hers, but they’re vacant and far away. Lena takes a deep shaky breath.

“Mom?” Lena tries softly. Alodie’s eyes shoot up, meeting Lena’s unsure gaze.

“It’s me. It’s Lena.” Lena adds quietly.

Something sparks inside the woman’s eyes, but it dims as quickly as it appeared.

“Can you play some music, love?” Alodie requests, nodding towards the record player on the table, her Irish accent warms her up inside. The vague familiarity makes Lena’s heart ache.

“Of course.” Lena replies quietly, approaching the stack of vinyls next to it.

She looks through the records, softly smiling when she recognizes albums from Irish artists. _No Need To Argue by The Cranberries, what a classic._

Lena puts the record on the platter and adjusts the tonearm before gently lowering it. When the first song off the album softly starts playing, Lena turns towards her mother again. Her heart soars at the sight of the small smile that plays on the woman’s lips.

Alodie hums appreciatively and watches the record spin.

Lena really looks at her for the first time and tries to memorize her features. Her hair is curly, dark, but with grey roots. Her jaw is sharp, but still soft, and friendly wrinkles decorate her face. When Lena thinks back to her childhood, the short careless years she’s spent with her mother, she only remembers a faceless woman with curls, and a flowery dress, a beach, and waves, and…

Lena stops her trail of thought and holds her breath as she listens to the song’s lyrics.

_Unhappiness, where's when I was young_

_And we didn't give a damn_

_'Cause we were raised_

_To see life as fun and take it if we can_

_My mother, my mother she'd hold me_

_Did she hold me, when I was out there_

It painfully twists her insides like a dagger. Of course the first song on the record is ‘Ode To My Family’.

Her throat tightens painfully and her eyes start to well up. There are so many questions Lena would like to ask, she absolutely _needs_ to ask. Though, she doesn’t have a clue where to start. She’s about to open her mouth when the door suddenly opens. A young man enters the room, holding a steaming teacup and a plate with a sandwich. His expression changes to one of surprise when he notices Lena.

Lena quickly recomposes herself.

“Do you have a visitor, Alodie? Who’s this?” The nurse asks conversationally, putting the plate and the teacup on the table in front of Alodie.

She doesn’t reply, Alodie’s eyes don’t stray away from Lena’s face.

Lena suddenly remembers her manners and holds out her hand towards the young man.

“I’m Lena. I’m just visiting.” Lena answers. She realizes how useless it is to clarify she’s visiting when she’s clearly sporting a large V on her chest.

The man, Adam, bless the heavens for all those nametags, shakes her hand and shoots her a kind smile. He appears to be younger than her, possibly fresh out of high school.

“Nice to meet you, Lena. My name’s Adam. Are you two related?” He asks curiously.

Lena remains quiet, looking back at Alodie instead with heaviness in her heart.

“My apologies if I overstep. I’ve seen a picture of Miss Byrne when she was younger and I swear, the resemblance is remarkable.” He grins before grabbing the plate and handing it over Alodie. She takes the sandwich and Adam puts the now empty plate back on the table.

“A picture?” Lena asks breathlessly, watching as her mother takes a small bite.

“Oh, yes, over here.” Adam leads her to the nightstand next to Alodie’s bed. Lena follows him and curiously looks at the framed photo. The photo is clearly taken at a graduation party. A young Alodie is proudly holding onto her certificate in front of a large building, presumably somewhere in Ireland. Her smile is radiant and her dark curls prettily frame her face. Her eyes, her nose, god, even her eyebrows… Even Lena can’t deny the striking resemblance.

“It’s nice of you to visit her. She hasn’t had a visitor in years, you see… Actually, now that I think about it, I’ve never seen anyone visiting her during the four years I work here.” Adam realizes with a sad smile. “She doesn’t remember much of her life. They’ve tried, you know, to make her remember again. Music therapy, light therapy… But no success.” Adam sighs, still looking at the photograph.

Lena tries her best to keep her emotions in check, but she can’t stop her bottom lip from trembling and her throat from tightening again. Her mind is racing rapidly and her eyes stay glued to the picture of the happy woman. An idea starts forming.

“I have to go.” Lena forces out. Adam looks at her with surprise. Lena clears her throat and walks back to her motionless mother again. Gently, she takes her hand and strokes her thumb across the back.

“Will you- will you come back?” Adam asks confusedly.

“Yes.” Lena whispers, a sad smile gracing her lips as she looks into her mother’s eyes. She tries to send her a reassuring message with hers, to somehow let her know that she’s no longer alone.

Lena lets the tears run freely on her drive back, she breathes heavily and holds her steering wheel in a death grip. She drives as quickly as the roads allow her and before she knows it, though it felt like a century, she finally pulls into a vacant parking spot at her destination. The building looms over her and Lena tries her best to ignore the giant CATCO letters on the side, and the thought that Kara’s most probably typing away on that floor somewhere. She pushes her thoughts aside and enters the elevator. Inside the tight space, Lena watches her reflection in the window and quickly wipes away the traces of her tearful car ride. The doors finally open to reveal Obsidian’s ivory white floor. Heads turn and eyes observe her with shock. She almost spots the woman she’s looking for immediately.

“Lena?” Kelly walks over, holding a clipboard to her chest.

“Kelly, I was hoping we could talk.” Lena tells her, ignoring the various curious eyes on her.

“Of course.”

“Privately.” Lena clarifies, pointedly looking around to send death glares to the people observing her.

“Right, let’s go to my office.” Kelly suggests nervously and leads her to a smaller room at the end of the hallway.

“Are you alright?” Kelly asks when she closes the door behind them. “I-, no that’s a stupid thing to ask. Of course you’re not. How- how are you doing, Lena?”

Lena’s quiet for a moment. Through the window in the door of Kelly’s office she spots a curious employee, looking away quickly when they meet Lena’s gaze. She sighs. She realizes it’s been all over the news, that she, Lena Luthor, killed her own brother. Her own flesh and blood, evil or not. _How is she doing?_ She’s not sure how to even answer that question.

“I wanted to ask you about the dementia trials, how are they coming along?” Lena says instead, focussing on keeping a good amount of distance between Kelly and herself.

Kelly looks a bit perplexed but recollects herself quickly.

“Oh! We’re currently testing the first prototypes, which are nowhere near market-ready yet, but the first results have been promising.” Kelly glances down at her clipboard and hands it to Lena.

Lena studies the numbers and x-ray photos, her eyes quickly scanning the information.

“You know, Lena. We’re all worried about you. I know you asked for space, but frankly, it’s not healthy. It’s okay to let yourself grieve. Talking about your loss really helps. It’s okay to let yourself feel.” Kelly pauses, trying to meet Lena’s eyes, but she doesn’t look up from the files on the clipboard. Kelly sighs sadly. “You know, Kara’s been dying to reach out to you. I think-.”

“You’re not my psychologist.” Lena cuts her off, shoving the results back in the woman’s arms.

“No, I’m not. But I’d like to think we’re friends.” Kelly sighs. Lena finally meets her eyes and sees nothing but sincerity in them.

Lena clenches her jaw and averts her gaze.

“Could you send one of the prototypes to L-Corp? I’d like to get a closer look, see if I could help tweak it a little. And could you send me an email with the latest results? Andrea wouldn’t mind.” Lena asks, not leaving much room for a negative answer.

Kelly sighs, but nods.

“Lena, please think about what I said-.” Kelly tries, but Lena’s already out of the door. Kelly sighs defeatedly.

Lena punches the button of the elevator and enters without sparing the other people in the tiny space a single glance. She’s tired of those judgemental looks. Though, Lena can already feel someone’s gaze on her. Lena exhales deeply and watches the doors close.

The set of eyes keep drilling in the side of her head and Lena decides she’s had enough. She turns her head, more than ready to send off another death glare, when she’s met with two very familiar blue eyes. _Oh._ Kara offers her a small hesitant smile and Lena has to stop her lips from doing the same. She settles on a stoic nod instead and averts her eyes with an ache in her chest. She feels stupid. She’s supposed to be smart, hell, she’s supposed to be a goddamn genius, but still, she let a pair of glasses and a pretty face fool her for years.

She ignores the bright blonde’s presence entirely the remainder of the hellish long elevator ride.

Finally, the elevator chimes and the doors slide open. Lena exits quickly, approaching her parking spot for a quick getaway.

“Lena?” Kara calls after her, Lena can hear her footsteps approaching rapidly. She briefly wonders if she’s using her superspeed to catch up with her. She grimaces at the thought.

Lena ignores her and unlocks her car with the press of a button.

“Lena? Can we talk?” Kara is, of course, suddenly standing right beside her.

“I have to go. I have work to do.” Lena tells her without looking at her, opening her car door.

“Lena, please. Are you okay? Is there anything I can do?” Kara asks her sincerely, sounding a bit defeated.

“No.” It’s the only thing Lena says before slamming her door shut and driving off. _No_ , she’s not okay and _no_ , there isn’t anything Kara can do to make that better. Not anymore.

She ignores Kara’s texts, in fact, she hasn’t even glanced at her phone all evening. The buzzing doesn’t distract her from the revealing reports on her screen. Kelly indeed sent her an email, not without mentioning that she could always talk to her if she needed to and that she’s not alone. Lena huffs at the message and focuses on the enclosed forms instead. Before she knows it, it’s nearing midnight again and her eyes are growing heavy. She studies a couple more x-rays when her body finally gives in to its desire to rest.

* * *

She locks herself in her private lab at L-Corp, studying the prototype closely. Lena connects it to her highly advanced computer and starts scanning the software and coding. Lena closes her eyes and takes a small DNA sample from her own finger. The drop of blood falls on top of a small platter, which is connected to her computer. Lena closes her eyes and focusses on her mother, her features, her proud smile in that old photograph. Her fingers start typing away, filling gaps in the code and adding new, more complex, elements. It takes a minute to upload. Lena gently grabs the contact lenses and places them on her eyes. She inhales deeply and lets the prototype activate.

She’s suddenly standing in a field on a sunny afternoon. The sunrays almost feel warm against her skin. It feels real, but not quite. Lena quietly watches the scene in front of her.

“Not so fast, Lena! I’m going to get you!” A younger Alodie with a flowery dress jokingly exclaims as she runs after a small child. She eventually grabs her and spins her around. Both her mother and her younger version laugh happily. A tear escapes Lena’s eye and rolls down her cheek.

It’s not even real, she knows that. This might as well not even be a real memory, just a glimpse of a moment she may have made up. Nonetheless, Lena’s heart aches at the loving display in front of her. The carelessness, the clear joy on their features. Lena feels a longing she’s long ago buried.

“I’m going to make you better, mother.” Lena promises shakily.

She watches them for a little longer and then closes her eyes.

“End simulation.”

* * *

Lena only shows up in her office when she has a meeting she absolutely cannot cancel. Even if it takes only thirty minutes of her time, it feels like a complete waste. She’s close to another breakthrough and she knows it.

She politely greets the older man and discusses some upcoming investments that would most definitely be beneficial for L-Corp. But she can’t really bring herself to care much. Thankfully, handling herself in meetings has become like second nature to her, so even with half her brain switched off, she manages to end it successfully. The board will be pleased.

Lena watches the man leave her office. She’s about to stand up and return to her lab when somebody knocks on the door. Lena’s head shoots up and she locks eyes with Kara, who’s hesitantly standing in the door opening with a large brown bag from Big Belly Burger. Lena sighs and watches as Kara slowly walks into her office.

“Hi.” Kara says nervously, fiddling with her glasses.

“Look, Kara, I’m really busy.” Lena tries, standing up and gathering the files she signed during the meeting.

“I know you are. And I know you keep forgetting to eat.” Kara holds up the bag with a small smile.

Lena wants to decline, but she can’t ignore the slight dizziness she feels from the lack of food in her stomach.

“Fine.” Lena sighs, making her way over to the couch. Kara beams as she places the bag on the table in front of her.

The silence lays heavy between them. Lena opens the wrapping to reveal a tasty burger, her stomach is almost screaming for it.

Kara joins her on the couch and Lena feels a strange urge to reach out and touch her. God, does she miss their hugs. But she can’t give in. Kara’s broken her trust, she’s broken _her heart_. Even now, after everything, Kara still doesn’t trust her enough to tell her the truth. Everything feels fake, like an act. As if Lena’s watching world’s longest Broadway show ever performed. Every single gesture, every smile, every hug, did it all mean nothing? Was their entire friendship just a way for Kara, _Supergirl_ , to keep an eye on the new evil Luthor in town? 

“What are you thinking about?” Kara breaks the silence and Lena realises she must’ve been observing her the entire time.

Lena lowers her burger and lets out a humourless laugh. She can’t take the pretence anymore. She’s sick and tired of it.

“You were never going to tell me, were you?” Lena asks tiredly. Kara frowns in confusion.

“What do you mean?”

Lena’s laugh is void of emotion, she shakes her head in disbelief.

“You know, I thought you were the kindest and most selfless person I’d ever met, when I first got to know you.” Lena begins, her expression growing sour. “I was a fool. I should’ve known better.”

Kara’s smile vanishes immediately. She opens her mouth only to close it again.

“You never really trusted me, did you? You were waiting for me to snap and finally become the villain I’m meant to be.” Lena huffs.

“What? What are you talking about? Of course I trust you.” Kara tries, looking at her with wide eyes.

“Just- drop the act, Kara. I’m tired.” Lena stoically replies, keeping her voice as steady as she can. She gets up to pour herself a glass of whiskey, turning her back towards her former friend.

“Lena?” Kara tries softly, but Lena doesn’t turn around.

“Why don’t you fly off somewhere?” Lena mumbles and quickly downs her drink.

Behind her, Kara freezes up completely, but Lena doesn’t see that. Though, she can sense the change in the room.

“You know?” Kara’s voice sounds small.

Lena doesn’t reply, she just pours herself another glass.

“How did- I really wanted to tell you, Lena. It’s just- it’s too dangerous.”

Lena grimaces against her glass. She turns around with fire in her eyes.

“Lex told me, right before I put a bullet in his chest.” Lena says sharply, taking a quick sip. “Everyone knew, but me. Am I right?” Lena chuckles humourlessly. “Alex, obviously, James, Winn, Brainy, Nia, Kelly…”

“Kelly doesn’t know.” Kara whispers sadly.

Lena arches an eyebrow and harshly puts her glass down on the table.

“They’ve all been lying to me. I trusted them, I trusted you!” Lena exclaims, hating how her voice cracks a little.

“I-I didn’t want to lie to you. I really didn’t, I hated it! But it was for your own safety. I- I am so sorry, Lena. I never meant to hurt you.” Kara’s eyes are watering.

“I need you to leave. Right now.” Lena says harshly and Kara visibly flinches at her words.

“I’m sorry.” Kara whispers sadly and takes her leave.

* * *

Lena desperately tries not to think about Kara. She clears her head as much as she can and steps inside of the cold large building where her mother lives. Corrie wordlessly hands her the badge when she arrives and fills in her name for her. Lena nods her thanks and makes her way through the hallway. She enters her mother’s room with her hand in her coat’s pocket, her fingers tracing the prototype she brought with her.

“Hey mom.” Lena says softly as she approaches her, again sitting the chair in the middle of the room.

The woman briefly meets her eyes, looking up at her curiously.

“Music?” Lena suggests, motioning towards the stack of records.

Alodie’s smile in reply takes away a bit of Lena’s stress.

“Any preferences? Gilbert O’Sullivan, The Corrs, Sinéad O’Connor, Thin Lizzy…?” Lena raises her eyebrows and lets out a surprised chuckle. Alodie doesn’t reply, she keeps staring at her with an unreadable expression. Lena settles on The Corrs, for nostalgia’s sake and gently lowers the record player’s tonearm.

“It’s you again.” Alodie suddenly says.

Lena quickly turns her head to look at her. Alodie’s staring right at her.

“Yes, it’s me. It’s Lena.” Lena smiles and moves closer to her. Alodie smiles, but doesn’t say anything in return.

“There’s something I’d like to try. It- it might help you remember.” Lena explains softly, reaching for the prototype in her pocket. She holds it out in the palm of her hand and opens it to reveal the special contact lenses.

“It shouldn’t hurt, but please tell me if it does.” Lena whispers and reaches forward to place the lenses on her mother’s eyes. She takes a deep breath and then activates them. They turn grey and Alodie’s expression changes to one of complete wonder. Lena grabs her hand and holds it tightly and waits.

Suddenly, the door opens to reveal Adam with Alodie’s lunch.

“Oh! Hey, Lena. Good to see you again.” Adam smiles at her before placing the teacup and sandwich on the table. He turns around and frowns. “What- what are you doing?” He stares at Alodie’s now grey eyes in fear.

“Shhh, Adam, it’s okay. They’re virtual reality contact lenses, they might help her remember.” Lena explains, trying to ease his worries. Adam stares at Alodie’s eyes in awe.

“That’s- that’s incredible.” Adam whispers in awe.

“They’re only prototypes. But this is a great opportunity to see if I’m on the right path.” Lena adds with a soft smile.

“Are you a scientist?”

Lena realises that she might be revealing too much.

“Something like that.” She mumbles, staring at Alodie’s hand when it twitches a little bit.

“What’s she seeing right now?”

“A memory, at least I think it is.” Lena observes her mother closely.

“End simulation.” Lena says when she notices another violent twitch of the woman’s hand.

She quickly removes the lenses and puts them back in the Obsidian box she ‘borrowed’. Alodie stares at her with an awed expression.

“Lena.” Alodie says quietly, staring right into her eyes.

Lena smiles the brightest smile in weeks.

“Yes, it’s me. Mom, it’s me.” She can’t stop the tears that escape her eyes.

Alodie’s hand comes up and gently touches Lena’s cheek. Suddenly, her expression grows tired and her eyes flutter shut. Lena feels her hand slip away and watches as her mother falls asleep in her chair.

“She’s your mother?” Adam’s voice startles Lena a little, she’d almost forgotten about him.

“Yes.” Lena breathes, wiping her tears away and recollecting herself.

“Why didn’t you come s-.”

“I didn’t know.” Lena admits tiredly.

“Jesus.” Adam frowns.

“I’m legally not allowed to even tell you about this device. Don’t tell anyone, please?”

“Who would I tell?” Adam replies incredulously.

“I don’t know.” Lena shrugs.

“If this will help her… My lips are sealed, ma’am, scout’s honour.” Adam says earnestly.

“And how much is that worth?” Lena chuckles.

“Do not underestimate the honour of a scout.”

* * *

Obsidian’s first prototypes are a success, Lena can only assume, since she sees them almost everywhere she goes. Though, those particular prototypes are used for entertainment and not for breakthroughs in the medical field quite yet.

However, not everyone supports this drastic change in the city. People are walking around with eerie grey eyes, bumping into each other constantly, because they’re no longer focussed on the world around them. It irritates Lena as well, she has to admit.

Right after she steps into her office, the phone on her desk demands her attention. Lena sighs, but walks over to check who’s calling. She huffs but accepts the call, settling in her comfortable chair.

“Andrea, always a pleasure.” Lena greets her sarcastically.

“I heard you’ve been tweaking with my product. Why the sudden interest?” Andrea says, straight to the point.

“Thought it would be an interesting side project. I can see the potential, Andrea.”

“I know you longer than today, Lena. I’m sure you have your reasons and I know you’re more than qualified. However, I expect you to share any progress with Kelly Olsen. She’s leading the dementia and ptsd trials.”

“Sure thing, boss.” Lena remarks.

“If you weren’t my friend I’d have sued you immediately, Lena.”

“I wouldn’t have expected anything less.” Lena laughs.

* * *

Kara- _Supergirl_ makes a statement on tv that evening, warning the citizens of National City about the dangers of Obsidian’s lenses. Lena almost changes the channel immediately, but she’s intrigued by her message. Lena eats a bit of the soup she’s cradling and listens to her speech.

_“It can be addictive to live in a perfect place where nothing hurts, but that’s not reality. Let’s not forget the world around us. Let’s not forget what living really means.”_

It doesn’t come as a surprise to Lena, that this invention has gotten somewhat out of hand. She doesn’t understand why anyone would need this type of VR in their daily lives in the first place, though, she does understand that it’s a goldmine, and money makes the world go ‘round, doesn’t it? So yes, Andrea is a business woman and she should’ve anticipated the dangers of her product, but Obsidian isn’t all evil like Supergirl is making it out to be.

Supergirl looks tired but determined to get the message across. And Lena knows that some people will probably listen to her, though she doubts it’s really enough to get them to stop. Lena sighs and turns off her television. She stands up and is about to put her empty bowl in her dishwasher when she suddenly hears a familiar sound on her balcony. A sound she hasn’t heard in a while. Lena puts her bowl away and closes the dishwasher before turning to face the superhero with her arms crossed.

“Are you trespassing now?” Lena arches an eyebrow in disbelief.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know how else to reach you. You haven’t been answering any of my texts.” Supergirl says quietly.

“What do you want?” Lena asks tiredly, moving passed the superhero to settle back onto her couch again.

“I- it’s Obsidian, I’m worried, Lena, I believe the VR lenses might be dangerous.”

“I’ve seen your speech, Supergirl.” Lena remarks sharply.

“Right, yes, then you know why we have to stop it!” Kara says determinedly.

“We? And what do you suggest _we_ do about it, Supergirl? I think you’re talking to the wrong person here, perhaps you should pay Andrea Rojas a visit.” Lena huffs.

Supergirl doesn’t look as confident as she did on tv earlier, she looks much more like Kara Danvers than her indestructible alter ego. She fiddles with her fingers a little and tries to meet Lena’s gaze.

“That’s the thing, I think she might be plotting something, Lena. We- the D.E.O. found files in Obsidian’s database that suggest-.”

“You’re joking, right?” Lena says incredulously, staring at the blonde in disbelief. Kara falters a little under her glare.

“I-I know she’s your friend, I’m sorry. I just thought that maybe you could get through to her and-.”

“You’ve got some nerve, Supergirl.” Lena interrupts her. “Look, I know you’re always out for a potential bad guy, that’s what you Supers do. But not everything has to be evil or villainous. I know it’s hard for you to grasp, but reality isn’t black and white, Supergirl.”

Supergirl is quiet for a moment, staring at Lena with wide eyes.

“The files-.” Supergirl cuts herself off when she sees Lena’s icy glare. “Just- just be careful, please?” Kara pleads, but doesn’t get a reply. She’s out of Lena’s penthouse almost as quickly as she came.

* * *

Lena spends all night scrolling through her father’s entries, making sure she isn’t missing anything vital. She needs more memories, real ones this time. And they have to be powerful. If only her father had left her some kind of diary. The only person who really kept one was… _Lex._ The memory of Supergirl handing her Lex’s diaries flashes through her mind. _Oh._

Lena gets up from the couch and approaches the box on the bottom shelf of her bookcase. There’s diaries from every year since Lex turned seven years old. She grabs a few of the oldest ones and quickly turns a couple pages until she finds the passage about Lex’s dog. About the trip with Lionel and an unknown woman. Lex writes about her in detail, what they did, what they talked about, even what kind of Irish song her mother sang to him when she put him to bed. Lena can almost see it and she realises that must be enough.

The next morning she arrives at L-Corp around the same time as the janitors, which makes them look at her curiously. Lena sends them a glare as she steps into the elevator leading to her private lab. She inhales deeply when she’s finally alone again. She goes to work almost immediately, writing codes and sequences as fast as her fingers allow. She finishes around noon and stares at her screen proudly. She uploads it to the device and carefully puts the tiny box into her pocket again.

Adam is already there when she arrives in her mother’s room. He’s occupying a chair right in front of the woman.

“Lena!” Adam exclaims excitedly at the sight of her.

“Lena.” Alodie repeats, and turns her head to greet her with a smile.

Lena is quiet, admiring the clear improvement in awe.

“Hey mom. How are you feeling today?” Lena asks conversationally, but her heart is much less calm.

Alodie doesn’t reply with words, but she smiles widely.

“She’s really improved, your VR things really helped.” Adam smiles.

Lena approaches the two, she briefly glances at the stack of records. A silent question hangs in the air.

“Sinéad O’Connor.” Alodie says as clear as day and Lena grins.

“What?” Adam frowns in confusion.

“That’s before your time.” Lena chuckles as she grabs the right record and places it on the platter.

When the music fills the room, Alodie’s eyes begin to sparkle.

“Did you bring another memory?” Adam wonders.

Lena nods and reveals the tiny box, carefully taking the contact lenses out.

“I’m going to put them in again.” Lena tells her mother softly and places the lenses on her eyes again. They turn grey and widen a little.

“Is this your memory?” Adam questions, studying Alodie with interest.

“No.” Lena tells him, but doesn’t take her eyes off her mother.

“How does that even work?”

“I got it from a diary. This particular part was very detailed, it wasn’t too hard to reconstruct.” Lena answers half-heartedly.

The room is quiet for a moment as Adam processes what Lena just said.

“You reconstructed a memory from words? Are you kidding? That’s incredible!” Adam exclaims in awe.

Lena shrugs as if it’s nothing, but her lips form a pleased smile.

“I just hope it’s enough. It’s not really _her_ memory. And memories aren’t always accurate, besides, there are multiple sides to every memory. She might’ve experienced it differently than-.” Lena stops herself there, trying to ease the slight panic crawling up inside her chest.

She turns her head to see Adam patiently waiting for her to continue. He doesn’t look expectantly. As if he’s leaving it completely up to her whether or not she wants to finish her sentence. And Lena knows, _god does she know_ , that she shouldn’t trust so easily. It doesn’t end well for her, it never does. But there’s something about Adam that makes her solid walls crumble down a little. He genuinely seems to care about her mother and he really seemed overjoyed by the idea of a possible treatment. If Lena were able to see auras, she’s sure Adam’s would be particularly bright. 

“My brother.” Lena eventually adds.

“Lex?” Adam inquires suddenly.

Lena freezes completely. _Shit._

“Look, Lena, I do watch the news. You know, not everyone lives under a rock like Corrie from reception.” Adam chuckles, but Lena doesn’t relax in the slightest. Her mind is running a marathon, going over every terrible scenario she can think of. Their endings more deadly by the second.

Lena looks at him sharply, her jaw clenching.

“I don’t know how much money you want, but I’ll give it to you.” Lena offers with her well-known business mask on.

“What?” Adam looks genuinely confused.

“If the press finds out- if my step-mother does, I fear for Alodie’s safety. So, if it’s money you want, just tell me how much.” Lena says defeatedly but with determination. Just the idea of Lilian catching wind of it, it sends a sickening shiver down her spine. She knows what the woman is capable of and that hurting defenceless citizens isn’t beside her.

Adam stares at her dumbfounded.

“What? Why would I- No! I would never go to the press behind your back.”

“You’d be surprised how many people would. It’s good money.” Lena grimaces, her shoulders still tense.

“I would never! You have my word. You can trust me, Lena.” Adam tells her with wide eyes, sounding sincere.

“Trusting people isn’t really my thing.” Lena sighs, turning back to watch her mother again.

“I understand, but- you have my word. Scout’s honour, remember?”

Lena rolls her eyes, but can’t help but feel relieved.

* * *

Lena isn’t blind. She knows she’s being watched, followed even. She’s seen the flashes of red and blue too often for it to be a coincidence. It not only annoys her, it deeply frustrates her. It means she can’t just jump into her car and visit her mother anymore. Not without a certain superhero and potentially the entirety of the D.E.O. finding out what she’s been up to. And it wouldn’t be that bad, if a third world war hadn’t broken loose surrounding Obsidian and their VR prototypes. Everyone is asked to return their contact lenses immediately, even risking a fine if they don’t. And, sure, Lena has seen Kelly’s e-mails popping up, asking her to send her _borrowed_ prototype back as soon as possible. But Lena decides she suddenly lost the ability to read and closes the application. She hasn’t signed any official forms, so technically there’s no proof she indeed possesses one of the prototypes. And Andrea surely has enough on her mind as it is.

Lena sighs and opens a different app instead to shoot her newfound ally a message. She smiles when she sees his updates on her mother’s improvement. She’s glad they decided to exchange phone numbers.

_Adam 6:33 PM_

**She’s singing an Irish song now! Wish I could tell you the lyrics, but** **🤷**

_Lena 7:55 PM_

**That sounds promising. Thank you for your updates, Adam.**

Lena sighs deeply and brings her fingers to her phone’s screen again.

_Lena 7:56 PM_

**Look Adam, we need to be very careful. I’m sure you’ve seen the news. All prototypes are being called back, including the one I borrowed. They’ve been used with questionable intentions, but you and I both know they can be used for good.**

**I’d understand if you don’t want to be involved in this. I know you declined, but my offer still stands.**

_Adam 7:58 PM_

**Not a chance. I’ve seen how much the lenses help your mother. I’m in. When she makes a recovery, they’ll finally see the potential too.**

_Lena 8:01 PM_

**I was hoping you’d say that. Sadly I can’t visit my mother any time soon. I believe I’m being watched. We’ll have to be more creative.**

_Adam 8:03 PM_

**You’re being watched?!? By who? The cops? If they know you have one of the prototypes can’t they just stop you?**

_Lena 8:04 PM_

**That’s the thing, I never officially signed anything. Barely a handful of people know I have it. Nothing will lead them to me.**

_Adam 8:05 PM_

**You mean you stole it?**

_Lena 8:05 PM_

**Is it really stealing if I kindly asked an employee to send it to me without any questions asked? Either way, that’s beside the point. I’m certain I’m being watched. I’m going to propose something, but feel free to decline.**

_Adam 8:06 PM_

**I’m listening** **👂**

_Lena 8:08 PM_

**Right, I’m still going to work on the prototype in my lab, that won’t change, but I won’t be able to test it out personally. I propose we meet somewhere in the middle around twice a week. I will hand you the lenses so we can carry on with the treatment.**

_Adam 8:10 PM_

**You’re really trusting me with this?**

_Lena 8:10 PM_

**I don’t trust anyone, Adam.**

_Adam 8:11 PM_

**This sounds an awful lot like trust. Your secret’s safe with me, Miss Luthor.** **🤫**

Lena rolls her eyes at Adam’s reply. She still doesn’t understand emoticons, or whatever they’re called. They remind her of the way Kara used to text her, sometimes the emojis would outnumber the actual words. The memory triggers a painful pang in her chest. She pushes the memory aside and focusses on another incoming message.

_Adam 8:13 PM_

**Why the intense secrecy tho? Do you really think the cops will follow you wherever you go?**

_Lena 8:14 PM_

**It’s not really cops I worry about. It’s our local vigilante.**

_Adam 8:14 PM_

**????? Are you saying you’re being watched by Supergirl? Oh my god.**

_Lena 8:15 PM_

**Yes. I’m sure you’re aware of her abilities, including enhanced hearing and x-ray vision. Which means we have to be really careful. Discussing the device in public would be very risky.**

_Adam 8:16 PM_

**But would it really be that bad if she found out? From what I’ve seen she’s a pretty understanding person. I’m sure she’d understand if you explain your intentions.**

_Lena 8:18 PM_

**She thinks I’m a villain, I don’t see that changing any time soon. Besides, I don’t trust her.**

_Adam 8:18 PM_

**You don’t trust Supergirl? Isn’t she the beacon of hope?**

_Lena 8:20 PM_

**Let’s just say we don’t see eye to eye.**

* * *

Lena’s running out of memories. But she realizes they don’t necessarily have to be real, as long as they spark that same sense of recognition. So she goes to work to create memories of moments that surely must’ve happened almost daily, accurate or not. Moments like eating together at the breakfast table, hugging each other, watching television together in the evening… Lena doesn’t remember those moments, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t happen. It sparks a dangerous longing inside her chest.

It’s without a doubt much more difficult to reconstruct. It takes a lot more patience and care than the previous memories. After working in her lab for four hours straight, Lena takes the elevator up to check if she’s needed and to grab herself a cup of coffee.

However, when the doors slide open to reveal the right floor, she’s met with Kara animatedly talking to her assistant. Kara stops mid-sentence when she notices her. Lena sighs deeply and walks straight to her office.

“Lena, wait!”

Kara follows her inside and closes the door behind her.

“What? Are you here to stop my villainous masterplan, Supergirl?” Lena scoffs and turns to look at her with her arms crossed.

Kara looks like a kicked puppy, it’s almost heart-breaking to see.

“I know you still have one of the prototypes. I just don’t understand why. They’re dangerous, Lena, they can mess with your head.” Kara sounds like she’s pleading.

“Perhaps if they’re used incorrectly. They were never meant to be used for leisure, for people who are too lazy to go to the gym or take a walk to the park.” Lena answers sharply. “I’m sure you think I’m out for world domination or something along that line, but I can assure you I am not.”

“I never thought that.” Kara says truthfully, stepping closer with determination in her eyes. “Kelly told me you were interested in the dementia trials specifically. I don’t know what you’re doing, but I know your intentions are good.”

Lena’s quiet for a moment, a little bit annoyed that Kelly told her, but it doesn’t really come as a surprise.

“Oh, do you? And how do you know what my intentions are?” Lena arches an eyebrow.

“I don’t. But I know _you_.” Kara answers so sincerely, Lena’s heart skips a beat. Feeling betrayed by her own body, Lena slips an unimpressed mask on instead, one she often uses during business meetings.

“Do you think so? Do you really know me, Supergirl?” The mocking tone in Lena’s voice makes Kara flinch.

“I’m- I’m still the Kara you know.”

“But you just happen to have an alter ego?” Lena agues with a humourless chuckle.

“I- I should’ve told you so long ago. I know that. I just- When people know, they become a target. And you’ve already been through so much, I- I convinced myself I was protecting you, but every time I kept my secret from you I- I wasn’t protecting you I was hurting you, I realize that now. And I am so _so_ sorry.” Kara’s sobbing, her voice breaks at the end.

Lena is quiet for a moment as she lets the words sink in. The urge to reach over and pull her in a hug is almost becoming unbearable, but she stiffly keeps her arms to her sides.

“Trust is a fragile thing, Kara. When it breaks, it’s not easily mended.” Lena’s voice is hoarse.

Kara nods wordlessly and wipes her tears away.

“Y-you hurt me so much.” Lena sobs, she can feel herself starting to shake.

Suddenly, all she can feel is the warmth of Kara’s arms as they wrap around her. Lena hates herself for it, but she sinks into the comfortable feeling and sobs against the indestructible girl’s neck. It feels so familiar and right, the voice in the back of Lena’s head that tells her to push her away immediately, grows quieter by the second. Lena shoves all rational thoughts aside, she’s absolutely exhausted and, honestly, touch starved. She’s going to let herself have this moment. That surely won’t hurt anybody, right?

They stand there for a moment, in the middle of Lena’s office. Lena keeps her eyes firmly shut, afraid that opening them would mean facing reality. Which is kind of a funny thought in the midst of the never-ending VR discussions surrounding the city. She vaguely registers Kara momentarily tensing up and moving to retract her arms. The pang of disappointment stings in Lena’s chest.

“Oh! I’m sorry, am I interrupting?” It’s Kelly, suddenly materializing in the door opening. The woman sends a small wave Kara’s way.

Lena quickly clears her throat and straightens her shoulders.

“Not at all. What can I do for you?” Just like that, Lena’s back in CEO mode.

“I- I should probably go. Bye!” Kara hastily says and shoots off, almost inhumanly fast. But surely she wouldn’t use her superspeed in front of Kelly.

“Right, it’s about the prototype. And yes, I know you’ve been ignoring all my emails.” Kelly looks at Lena pointedly.

Lena is about to explain herself when Kelly continues.

“And I get it, I see the potential too. Some patients have made incredible progress all thanks to this new treatment. It’s absolutely ground-breaking. But the board doesn’t care about that. All they care about is the public’s opinion and their money.” Kelly scoffs with determination in her eyes and Lena looks at her in surprise. She doesn’t know what she expected from this conversation, but this surely wasn’t it.

“Are you saying I can keep it?” Lena asks curiously.

“I’m saying I want us to work together on this. I know Andrea asked you to share your progress with me, which you of course didn’t do, but I think we’d make a pretty good team. What do you say?”

Lena’s actually speechless.

“I don’t usually work with a lab partner.” Lena utters, which is only partly a lie. She does usually prefer to work alone, especially when it’s a project this close to her heart.

“I won’t tell anyone. You can trust me.” There are those words again, ‘you can trust me’. Do those words still hold any meaning? Or do people just throw those words around just to get what they want? Lena isn’t so sure anymore.

“I won’t even tell Alex.” Kelly adds sincerely.

Lena sighs tiredly.

“Fine.”

“Really?” Kelly smiles widely.

“You’re excellent at what you do. I’d be a fool to say no.” _And for some reason she feels like she can trust her._ And maybe that has something to do with the fact she doesn’t seem to know that Kara is Supergirl. Which essentially makes Kelly the only person who didn’t lie to her face.

* * *

She doesn’t tell Kelly everything, of course. She tells her just enough to have something to work with. Their joint effort proves to be incredibly invaluable. Soon enough, all of Lena’s remaining doubts slip away.

“So you’re talking to Kara again?” Kelly breaks the silence in Lena’s lab.

“Not really.” Lena mumbles as her fingers type away rapidly.

“You’re just hugging then?” Kelly says jokingly.

Lena doesn’t answer, instead she studies her notes closely as if she only just discovered them.

“Look, Lena, I don’t know what happened between you two, but you obviously care about each other. Why are you doing this to yourself?”

“She broke my trust.” Lena offers tiredly.

“Did she cheat on you or something?”

Lena freezes in her movements.

“Did she?” Kelly asks curiously.

“No, no. We were just friends, best friends.” Lena quickly clarifies.

Kelly quietly studies her for a moment.

“It’s none of my business, but this kind of sounds like a break-up.”

Lena clears her throat and tries not to be affected.

“I’d appreciate it if we focussed on the research instead.” Lena tries so hard to sound like she’s in a board meeting, but her voice lacks the usual sharpness.

“Lena, the world is not going end if you admit you have feelings. It’s okay. I’ve seen how devastated Kara’s been ever since you two started fighting. The amount of times Alex had to cancel our dates, because Kara wouldn’t stop crying. Kara’s struggling just as much.” Kelly sighs mournfully.

“I don’t want to hear it.” But she really does. “I need a break.” Lena promptly stands up and heads towards the elevator.

* * *

The lunchroom is awfully crowded when Lena arrives. Though, she spots Adam almost immediately, he excitedly waves her over to his booth.

“Lena! Good to see you.” Adam smiles.

Lena offers him a smile as she settles down.

“Did you bring it?” Adam asked in a low voice, suddenly his expression changes drastically. “Oh shoot! That totally sounded like I’m here to buy drugs from you or something. Do you- do you think Supergirl is listening to us right now?”

Lena actually snorts at that, his expression is absolutely priceless.

“I wouldn’t be surprised, really.”

“Isn’t that like a breach of privacy?” Adam wonders as he looks at the ceiling as if he’s expecting to spot Supergirl hanging down a lamp.

“You tell her that.” Lena huffs.

Adam watches with wonder as Lena places the tiny box on the table. Suddenly, Adam clears his throat and eyes the ceiling again.

“I’ve been dying to read this book, Lena. Thank you so much for bringing it to our book club meeting.” Adam emphasizes rather loudly.

Lena’s eyebrows shoot up as she stares at him in disbelief. _Oh boi._ When Adam finally meets her eyes again, Lena firmly shakes her head.

* * *

Instead of returning to her penthouse that afternoon, Lena takes a different road and parks her car near the edge of a nearby forest. It’s quiet and peaceful without all the loud city noises. It’s exactly what she needs. Though, she hasn’t really come there to clear her head. Lena casually leans against the side of her car and closes her eyes to enjoy the warm sunbeams on her face. Soon enough, she hears something shift in the air and the familiar sound of two boots hitting the ground. Lena slowly opens her eyes.

“A book club, really?” Supergirl scoffs.

“Eavesdropping is considered rude, Supergirl.” Lena deadpans.

“It’s not rude if you’re in potential danger.” Supergirl emphasizes.

“Oh? I didn’t think it’d be time for my quarterly assassination attempt already.”

“That’s not funny, Lena.” She sighs. “It’s Andrea. I know you don’t want to believe it, but she’s really planning something bad. I have a bad feeling about this.” Supergirl pauses for a moment before continuing. “Lena? Who was that guy at the lunchroom?”

“That’s none of your business.” Lena answers quickly.

Supergirl looks as if she’s not sure where to go from here.

“Do you know him well? What if he works for Andrea?”

“Adam doesn’t work for Andrea.”

Something flashes over Supergirl’s features that Lena hasn’t seen before.

“Adam?”

“That’s his name, yes.” Lena arches an eyebrow at Supergirl’s odd behaviour.

“Oh, okay.” Suddenly, the almighty superhero is at a loss for words.

Lena stares at her for a moment before deciding to change the subject.

“Why do you think Andrea is after me?”

Supergirl straightens her shoulders and goes back to business.

“She’s something planned for the prototypes, it’s possibly already done. She's behind bars now, but- The files we found mentioned some kind of deliberate glitch in the first batch.”

Lena stops breathing. _A glitch?_

“What kind of glitch?”

“We’re not sure, but it might be connected to the brain. It- it didn’t look good, Lena.”

_Oh god no._

“And this glitch is in all of them?” Lena holds her breath.

“If it’s the same batch, possibly yes.” Supergirl tells her earnestly.

Lena puts the back of her hand against her forehead.

“Are we talking mind control?”

“Possibly.” Supergirl answers sorrowfully. She pauses before asking her next question.

“Lena, have you used the contact lenses too?”

“Yes, I have.” Lena whispers.

Supergirl doesn’t say anything, but she tenses up completely. Her fingers form a tight fist and she looks like she desperately wants to hit something.

“It was only a couple of times.” Lena adds, but that doesn’t do anything to ease Supergirl’s worries. Lena’s own worries are a whole different story.

Lena releases a shaky breath. All this time she thought she was helping her mother, she might’ve actually just made her an easy target to some deranged evil plan. Lena’s heart is hurting so much, she wouldn’t be surprised if it stopped beating altogether. She pushes herself off the side of her car and combs her fingers through her hair in frustration. Supergirl notices her distress and steps a little closer.

“Lena, you’re going to be okay. I’ll make sure of it. They’re already working on it at the D.E.O. and-.”

“It’s not me I’m worried about, Kara.” Lena tells her tightly. Supergirl’s head shoots up at the sudden mention of her name.

“You weren’t supposed to find out. Not about this. Not about something that finally gives me a sense of hope again. I can’t- because I- because I can’t trust you.” Lena sighs tiredly, noticing the way Supergirl’s face slightly falls. “But now- I don’t think I have much of a choice left.”

Supergirl remains quiet and watches as Lena inhales shakily to prepare herself for what she’s about to reveal.

“I found my biological mother.” Lena reveals and completely stuns the superhero in front of her.

“But-.”

“Turns out she didn’t actually die that day. My father- Lionel, took her to his lab rather than an actual hospital and when he realized he couldn’t help her, he shipped her off to some mental institution out of town. She- my mother, she doesn’t remember anything. She doesn’t remember me. But- the VR treatment is ground-breaking, Kara. She’s been improving so m-much.” Lena can’t stop the sobs from taking control of her body.

“Oh, Lena.” Supergirl whispers and puts a comforting, but hesitant, hand on her shoulder, rather than giving her one of her famous hugs.

Lena decides to throw caution to the wind and closes the distance, resting her face on Supergirl’s shoulder and allowing the super to wrap her arms around her shaking frame. When she closes her eyes, she can pretend that everything is alright. That Kara hasn’t lied to her for years and that they’re still best friends. Best friends who regularly take each other on completely platonic dates and totally don’t linger a little too long when they hug each other goodbye. There’s always been something between them and Lena’s sure Kara’s aware of that too. They’ve danced around that thin invisible line between friends and lovers for too long. And, frankly, Lena’s more than tired of it. And above all she’s sick and tired of her traitorous heart.

Lena pulls away to put some respectable distance between herself and her former best friend.

“Lilian can’t find out she’s still alive. We both know what she’s capable of.” Lena tells her when she’s got her voice back under control.

Supergirl nods firmly.

“Thanks for telling me. I’ll make sure she stays safe.” Supergirl reassures her.

Lena sends her watery smile and then frowns a little.

“Does Kelly know about the glitch?”

“Oh, definitely. Alex keeps warning her about it.” Supergirl chuckles lowly.

Lena looks confused.

“Let’s just say Kelly is even more stubborn than Alex is. She sees the potential too, she knows how important this kind of treatment is. Despite the warnings, she doesn’t want to let go of it.”

“Then why didn’t she say anything? Why didn’t she warn me?” Lena’s frown only deepens.

“She’s not allowed to give away that kind of information, hell, even I am not really allowed to say anything. And I think Kelly’s convinced she’ll find a way to somehow dismantle the glitch? Is that- Can you actually _dismantle_ a glitch?” Supergirl wonders in confusion.

Lena succeeds in keeping her face mostly emotionless.

“All glitches are removable, sure. I just wish I knew about this sooner.” Lena replies exasperatedly.

“I did try to tell you, you know?” Supergirl offers.

“I know.” Lena sighs regretfully. “God, I have to call Adam.”

“Right.” Supergirl suddenly falters. “I’ll just-.”

“Please, stay?” Lena asks despite her better judgement. Supergirl nods and watches as Lena retrieves her phone from her pocket. Lena’s eyes widen when she notices the notifications on her screen. She clicks on the preview with a racing heart.

_Adam 1:09 PM_

**That went kind of well didn’t it? Sorry about the book club thing, though it’s not completely my fault if Supergirl thinks you’re a nerd now. Cause let’s face it, you kind of already were one.** **🤷**

_Adam 1:12 PM_

**I might be seeing things, but I’m sure a black car is following the bus I’m on.**

_Adam 1:20 PM_

**Okay I don’t want to alarm you but they’re still there. I can’t see their faces cause their windows are all dark.**

_Adam 1:33 PM_

**I’m definitely just being paranoid, right? I’m sorry for spamming you.**

_Adam 1:44 PM_

**Anyways, I’m almost there. I’ll let you know how it goes!**

_Adam 1:48 PM_

**SOS**

Lena gasps and squeezes her phone in a death grip.

“What is it?” Supergirl asks alarmed.

“He’s in danger. I should’ve known- fuck!” Lena exclaims in anger.

“Hey, it’s going to be alright. Do you know where he was headed?” Supergirl’s back to business.

“St. Mary’s Mental Institution. Kara, please be-.” But Supergirl is already gone.

_Careful._

* * *

Storming into the D.E.O. completely unannounced isn’t the brightest idea, because as soon as Lena steps foot inside the crowded hallway, multiple guns are pointed her way. Yes, perhaps she should’ve called.

“Take it easy! I’m here to help.” Lena holds her hands up and searches the crowd for a familiar face.

“Lena? Is that you? What the hell are you doing here?” Alex, sporting an impressive black outfit, comes storming her way through the crowd. She signals to the agents and soon enough they lower their guns, though they keep staring at Lena as if she’s holing a ticking timebomb.

“I didn’t know where else to go. K- Supergirl just flew right into danger and I hate not knowing what’s going on.” Lena explains, lowering her hands. “And I think I can help with the glitch.”

Alex gives her an exasperated look, but nods.

“Thank god, come with me.” Alex breathes and leads Lena through the busy building until they reach a smaller control room with impressively large computer screens. Winn is rapidly typing away while keeping his eyes on three screens at once.

“Lena! Welcome to the tech-cave.” Winn grins while his fingers keep moving impressively fast.

Lena arches an eyebrow at that and Alex just sighs.

“It’s not my idea.” Alex shoots her a look. “Winn will show you our progress. It’s good to have you back, Lena.” She shoots her a soft smile that doesn’t quite match with her D.E.O. attire. Alex is about to turn back, when Lena speaks up.

“What about Kara? Any updates?” She tries to keep her voice as steady as possible.

“They were already gone when she arrived. The boy is okay, but apparently one of the patients is missing.”

It hits her like a train.

Lena covers her face with the palms of her hands. _God no._

“Lena?” Alex asks worriedly.

“She’s in danger, we have to act now!”

“The patient?” Alex arches an eyebrow.

“Yes!”

“How do you know it’s a woman?”

Lena’s quiet for a moment, sensing both Alex’s and Winn’s eyes on her. She closes her eyes and sighs deeply.

“My biological mother is a patient there. If Lilian is involved, which she most definitely is, I’m afraid she just found what she’s looking for.”

Lena opens her eyes to see stunned looks.

* * *

Lena’s usually not too bad at keeping her mind at a task. But the series of code on the screen in front of her are making her eyes dry out and the sudden migraine isn’t helping much either. She presses her fingers onto her forehead. She can’t stop thinking about what Lilian might be up to. _Is her mother okay? Why is Kara taking so long?_

A sharp sting shoots through her head that makes her groan. _Fuck._

“Lena? Are you okay?” Winn asks, pausing his fingers above his keyboard.

“I’m fine. Any progress?” Lena drawls.

“Well, I’m kind of stuck here. Their security is air-tight, I’ve tried everything I can think of.” Winn sighs.

“Let me see.” Lena rolls her chair right next to Winn so she can look at his screen.

“Hold on, I recognize this sequence.” Lena springs in action, her fingers moving on their own on Winn’s keyboard. “It’s a pattern, you see? Of course…” Lena mumbles and frowns in concentration. Winn just stares at the rapidly appearing chain of numbers on his screen.

Lena’s eyes flicker across the string of numbers as she finally understands Andrea’s coding. She should’ve known really. When she ends the string and completes one of the advanced sequences, her migraine comes back at full force. She groans, again, and forcefully closes her eyes.

“Lena?” Winn looks at her with wide eyes.

“I’m-I’m fine. I’m taking a break. You’ve got the pattern, right?” Lena stands up a bit wobbly and returns her chair to the right desk.

Winn looks worried, but nods and returns to the task at hand.

Lena walks through the hallway and briefly wonders if they changed the lights while she was in Winn’s tech-cave. It’s bright, too bright. The space vaguely reminds Lena of a space ship. Lena almost trips, her legs a bit unsteady, but she catches herself on the wall. She opens the door to the bathroom and approaches the row of sinks. When she looks at herself in the mirror she realizes something is very off. Her eyes are no longer green, instead they’re eerily grey. It’s the last thing she sees before she passes out on the cold hard tiles.

* * *

She’s floating in space, calmly and contently. It feels like freedom. As if all heavy burdens are lifted off her shoulders. She doesn’t feel them anymore. In fact, she doesn’t feel anything except for the strange refreshing breeze against her face. _Wait, isn’t this space?_

“Lena.” It’s a name, it’s her name. But there’s nobody except for herself and the stars. One star in particular is so bright and pretty and big and- _Oh._

“Lena, you have to stop this.” The flying person in front of her says. _Space sure is weird._

She wants to reply, but she can’t find her mouth.

“Lena, please, come back to me.” The voice sounds angelic, but sad. _Is this an angel? Why is the angel sad?_

“Your mother is safe and the glitch has been dealt with. The only thing you have to do now is wake up! You need to end the simulation now.”

_My mother? Glitch? Simulation?_

The words don’t make sense to her at all. All she can do is stare at the pretty figure in front of her. She looks almost ethereal, the way she seems to float without any effort at all. The way her hair moves almost in slow-motion. But there’s something wrong. The angel is crying, no, she’s sobbing. The tears are streaming down her face and all Lena can do is watch. She desperately wants to move, to reach out and offer her some kind of comfort, but she can’t get her body to do what she demands. In fact, she doesn’t even feel her body.

She feels a sudden panic rising in her chest. _What is happening? Where am I?_

“Lena, I- I can’t lose you again. Please- please come back to me. I promise I’ll never lie to you again. I’ll do anything, just- please wake up?” The figure pleads, her voice breaking and the sobs threatening to take over again.

“I love you.” The angel whispers tearfully.

Something deep inside of Lena suddenly sparks alive. A feeling of warmth crawls up from her toes. When she opens her eyes, things are much clearer now. The symbol on the woman’s chest, the emotions in those crystal blue eyes. _Kara._

“End simulation.” Lena whispers and falls back into the dark void.

* * *

The room is far too bright. Her eyelids refuse to expose her eyes to the excessive levels of artificial light.

“Lena?” A soft voice tries. Lena’s eyes finally flutter open and she takes in her surroundings. Her eyes land on the worried Kryptonian’s face immediately. 

“Kara.” Lena says hoarsely. She tries to sit up, but reconsiders when she realizes how sore her body feels. She gasps when she notices the sling on her arm.

“What- what happened?”

Kara looks pale, but she tries to send her a reassuring smile anyway.

“The glitch. The first wave activated just before Winn finished the sequences.” Kara explains regretfully.

Lena’s mind starts racing immediately.

“My mother, is she-.”

“She’s alright now, she’s safe. She was asking for you, actually.” Kara smiles softly.

Lena’s heart skips at her words. She can’t stop the smile that forms on her lips. But then she looks down at her arm again and frowns.

“What happened to my arm?” Lena wonders.

Kara sadly looks down before answering.

“The glitch took control over your body momentarily and you destroyed a couple of computers and- you kind of attacked Alex.”

Lena stares at her with wide eyes.

“I did what? My god. Is she alright?”

“She’s fine, J’onn was able to stop you once he realized what was happening.”

Lena breathes out in relief and sinks back into the pillow under her head.

Kara turns her head towards the closed door, probably using her x-ray vision to look through it. She turns back towards Lena with a soft smile on her face.

“There’s someone here who really wants to see you.”

Lena arches her eyebrows, but Kara doesn’t tell her anything else, instead she approaches the door to reveal a nervous looking Adam.

“Lena!” He barges into the room and approaches her with wide eyes. Kara silently slips through the door to leave them alone. Lena hates that she misses her instantly.

“Oh my god, I was so worried. Are you alright?” Adam worries.

“I feel fine. Are you okay? Did they hurt you?” Lena asks worriedly, quickly scanning him for any visible injuries, but she finds none.

“I’m okay! They used something on me to make it impossible for me to lie, I am so sorry. They took Alodie. But Supergirl was amazing!!! She flew off right after them and chased them until she got her to safety! And now that this glitch is gone, we can continue with the treatment!” Adam fills her in excitedly.

“Where is Alodie now?” Lena wonders.

“She’s right here! Just a bit further down the hall!”

Lena gasps and tries to sit up again, a bit uncomfortable but it’ll do.

“You probably shouldn’t move too much, Supergirl told me about your injuries.” Adam pauses before lowering his voice. “She really cares about you, Lena. Like a lot. I know you two don’t see ‘eye to eye’, but she was so worried about you. I’m pretty sure she would’ve stopped earth’s rotation if it meant it would save you. And, honestly, I think she actually could do that. How cool would that be?”

“That would be incredibly catastrophic. I don’t see how destroying the planet would save me.” Lena can’t help but grin at him.

“I mean, theoretically speaking, I _could_ do that, but I really shouldn’t.” Kara appears in the door opening again with a soft smile.

“Wow!” Adam stares at her with wide eyes.

Lena chuckles at the expression on his face, but then her eyes find Kara’s smile and she can’t bring herself to look away.

“I’m- I’m going to tell Alodie you’re awake!” Adam leaves, but Lena barely notices that.

“I hope you never do anything destructive to save me.” Lena smirks at the approaching superhero.

“I mean, I’d do a lot of things to save you, but destroying earth might be a little bit extreme. Though, now that I think about it, I could always just take you to another planet-.” Kara’s smiles when she hears Lena’s loud laugh.

“Please, don’t destroy all of humanity for me, that’d look bad.” Lena laughs breathlessly before turning serious again. “Thank you for saving my mother. I don’t know what I’d do if-.” Lena shakes her head to force that thought away and inhales deeply. “Kara?”

“Yeah?” Kara looks up, their eyes locking instantly.

“Were you really in the- virtual world with me? Or did my mind make that all up?” Lena asks carefully.

Kara looks down, looking a bit nervous all of a sudden. She swallows tickly and returns her gaze again with determination in her eyes.

“It was real. It was me.” Kara tells her and Lena’s heart does something acrobatic.

“I meant it, what I said.” Kara pauses. “I- I know I hurt you. I wish I could go back in time and tell you sooner, but I can’t. You- Lena, you mean the world to me. I’d do anything to keep you out of harm’s way. And I should’ve realized how much I was hurting you with my secret. I’m so sorry.” Kara says earnestly, the sadness evident in her eyes,

Lena holds out her hand and waits for Kara to grab it. She gently strokes the skin with her thumb.

“I understand it now. You didn’t want me to get hurt. But I did get hurt. And I did what I always do when people hurt me, I built a wall around myself and shut everyone out. Makes it difficult to see things from other people’s point of view. But I see yours now and I’m sorry it took me so long.” Lena tells her sincerely and squeezes her hand.

Kara takes a shaky breath and gives her a tearful smile.

“And, for the record, I love you too.” Lena whispers.

Kara stares at her in disbelief.

“You do?” Kara asks softly.

Lena nods with an adoring look on her face.

“Thank Rao. I mean, it probably would’ve been a bit awkward if I had just said that out of the blue whi-.”

“Kara?” Lena interrupts. “Just kiss me.” She adds with a smirk.

Kara’s eyes widen momentarily, and then they lock onto Lena’s lips. She leans forward to capture them in a gentle kiss and Lena melts into it completely. Lena’s free hand moves up to cup Kara’s cheek and pull her even closer, though she knows she couldn’t possibly move a Kryptonian. Her lips are softer than she had imagined, and so gentle. At this rate, Lena’s sure her heart could compete at the upcoming Olympics. The worries of the world wash away for a little bit and all she can focus on is Kara’s gentle touch.

She eventually pulls away to catch her breath.

“Would you like to formally meet my mother?” Lena suggests happily.

“I’d love to.” Kara beams and gently helps Lena to her feet.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena decides to travel to Ireland to discover her roots and to help her mother remember her past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey there!
> 
> I hope you enjoy this bonus chapter. I really let my fantasy run wild with this one...  
> I do love drama 🤷
> 
> Also, yes, I am aware I've been misspelling Miss Lil(l)ian Luthor's name, but I'm this far in now and too lazy to go back and edit all of that, so apologies :')
> 
> English isn't my first language. Sorry for any mistakes!
> 
> Enjoy this crazy ride and stay healthy xxx

Lena enters the building with less guns pointed her way this time. She's a familiar face now, believe it or not. When she approaches the main hall, she's greeted with a nod from Alex and a bright smile from Kara, confidently sporting her Supergirl gear.

"Lena!" Supergirl is by her side in a second, beaming at her.

"I didn't know you were coming today?"

Lena smiles at her.

"Winn wanted to share some news with me. I suppose he's where he usually is?"

"His tech-cave, oh yeah he basically lives there now."

"I'm not calling it that." Lena rolls her eyes and moves to turn around. "I'll see you at lunch?" She waits for Kara to nod excitedly in reply before facing the hallway and making her way to the now familiar room.

Winn looks up when she closes the door behind her.

"Ever heard of the city Bray?" Winn asks a bit mysteriously.

"Can't say I have." Lena comes to a halt right behind Winn and examines the information on his widescreen.

"Are they...?"

Winn has compiled everything he's found, including some actual names and pictures.

Siobhan Byrne. 75. Bray, Ireland.

The picture under the name shows a kind looking grey haired woman. Lena smiles softly when she notices the striking resemblance to her mother.

Ciara Byrne. 52. Bray, Ireland.

Ciara's hair is just a shade lighter than Alodie's, Lena notices in an instant. Her eyes are dark and warm as she smiles at the camera. But she is, without a doubt, family.

"I think I've just found your grandmother and your aunt."

She's actually speechless, which doesn't happen too often. Even during the most difficult and intense meetings, Lena knows exactly what to say. But now, staring at the pictures of her biological family members, she's unable to find the right words.

"And I'm pretty sure Ciara has a son, which means you have at least one cousin." Winn adds, pointing at another picture of the woman with a younger man.

"Thank you, Winn." Lena croaks out, her voice giving away how she's feeling.

"No worries." Winn beams at her.

* * *

"Lena, this is amazing! Have you told your mother?" Kara stares at the pictures in awe.

"Not yet." Lena takes a quick look around the lunch room and gently puts the pictures back into her pocket. The place might as well be deserted, but Lena can't help but feel on edge. If this information falls in the wrong hands... Lena's certain she won't be able to relax until Lilian is arrested and put behind bars in the most secure prison she can think of.

"Are you going to? Do you think seeing these pictures might help her remember?" Kara wonders.

"They might. It would be even better if I could recreate an actual memory to show her. It's not just seeing them, she would be able to hear their voices, see their mannerisms. She would even be able to visit the place she grew up in-..." Lena cuts herself off and an idea starts forming.

Kara stares at her expectantly and tries to catch up with her rapid trail of thought.

"Of course." Lena whispers to herself.

"What?"

Lena looks at her again with determination in her green eyes.

"We're going to Ireland."

* * *

"I think this would really help her, Lena." Kelly agrees. Lena knows that telling her about her mother was the right decision. Kelly is truly an incredible addition to the team and her knowledge about dementia and amnesia treatments is extremely valuable.

All four of them, Kara, Alex, Kelly, and Lena, are standing in the middle of the control room at the D.E.O.. Kara's radiating excitement, while Alex is silently watching the interaction in front of her.

"I know. I'm going to show her the pictures and see if she recognizes them." Lena turns towards the secured medical bay of the D.E.O.. Alodie is staying in one of the rooms until Lilian is caught. She's safe there and Lena can visit her whenever she likes.

"I'll come with you. I still have to run a couple tests." Kelly realizes and turns to follow her.

Kara watches Lena and Kelly leave the room and is about to open her mouth when she's abruptly cut off by her sister.

"You're not going to Ireland." Alex says sternly.

"What? I really want to go!" Kara exclaims sadly.

"Supergirl can't just go on vacation." Alex hisses quietly.

"This is not a vacation! This is- this is really important to Lena and I want to be there for her." Kara pleads.

"Kara." Alex sighs tiredly. "I'm really sorry. You know you can't just leave, not with Lilian Luthor still posing as a threat to the city. You can go when she's behind bars."

Kara sulks even though she knows her sister is right.

* * *

Lena gently opens the door in case her mother is sleeping, but she finds her wide awake and in the middle of a conversation with Adam.

"Lena!" Adam exclaims and Alodie turns her way with a smile. It genuinely warms her heart.

"Hey Kelly. Is it time for some more tests?" Adam wonders when he notices the other woman.

"Yes, if you don't mind ma'am." Kelly addresses Alodie, ever so polite.

"That's alright, dear." Alodie replies and then focuses on Lena again.

Kelly walks over to the desk with medical supplies and grabs her clipboard filled with notes. Lena reaches out to grab her mother's hand and gently holds it.

"Hello mom. How are you today?"

"Perfectly fine, Adam was just telling me about Supergirl and her powers. This city is a bit odd, but I like it."

Lena can't help but chuckle at that.

"She saved me, didn't she?" Alodie asks a little bit unsure, as if she doesn't quite trust her own memories.

"Yes, she did." Lena replies quietly. "Don't worry, mom. You're safe. Nothing can happen to you here." She adds sincerely, noticing the fear in her mother's eyes.

Alodie relaxes a little bit and nods.

"I want to show you something." Lena reaches into her pocket and retrieves the pictures. She holds them up for her to see and hands them over so she can grab them.

The room is quiet for a moment as Alodie stares at photos in her hands. There's a short lived spark of recognition in the woman's eyes before she frowns and takes a closer look.

"You recognize them, don't you?" Lena asks her softly.

Alodie doesn't answer, her eyes don't leave the faces of her relatives.

"Are they-?" Adam begins cautiously.

Lena nods at him with a teary smile and then returns her gaze to her mother.

"Mom? How would you feel about going to Ireland with me?"

* * *

After yet another lead that ends in a long abandoned warehouse at the edge of town, Kara is very close to losing hope. How hard can it be to catch one single human? She appears to be everywhere but nowhere at the same time. It is, to put it lightly, incredibly frustrating.

Supergirl lands on the balcony of Lena's penthouse. The thud of her boots is accompanied by a tired sigh that escapes her lips. It's been a long day of playing cat and mouse without ever even getting near the damned mouse.

Lena's sitting on a couch in her living room, waiting for Kara to let herself in.

"No luck?" Lena asks when she notices her lack of energy.

"Nothing. I don't know how she does it. Are you sure she's not secretly an alien?" Kara sighs as she settles down next to her.

Lena chuckles lightly.

"That would surely be something for the headlines." Lena takes a sip of her drink before putting it down on the table in front of her. "I can assure you she's not. She's just- she's always been very...innovative."

"It's like she's always one step ahead of me." Kara sounds exasperated.

Lena leans a bit closer and puts her hand on Kara's.

"I know you're doing everything you can. It's not your fault she hasn't been caught yet." Lena tells her, trying to ease her tension a little bit. "One of these days she's going to try to make a move and we'll be prepared.”

Kara nods and intertwines their fingers.

"Lena, I don't think you should go to Ireland when she's still out there. Or at least wait until we've got a solid lead." Kara looks up to meet her eyes again. She sighs sadly. "And I’m afraid I can’t go with you."

"I know. And that's okay." It's not like she really expected Kara to drop all her Supergirl duties to go on a trip with her. "I'll just go with my mother, that's fine."

Kara frowns at that.

"Isn't Kelly coming with you?"

"Oh no, she has to stay here to supervise the new prototypes and ensure everything goes smoothly this time."

"So it's just going to be the two of you?"

"Yes, Kara. Why?" Lena arches an eyebrow at Kara's odd behaviour.

"Oh, nothing. It's just, you know, really far away. In a different country, a different continent even. You'll be on a plane for like, what, eleven hours, what if the weather-."

"Kara. We’ll be fine. I'll take my private jet, which I've designed myself. Its technology is going to get us through any kind of weather, trust me. I'll never let anything happen to my mother."

"I know that, but please, think about yourself too? If I can't be there to keep you safe, at least consider asking someone else to come with you? Preferably, someone who knows how to use a smartphone." Kara pleads with a hint of a playful smile.

"I'll have you know I've gotten a lot better at texting. All thanks to Adam. It's truly fascinating how there are smiley faces for every single emotion you can think of." Lena tells her proudly, she's also recently learned a couple of 'new' abbreviations. And yes, she is indeed very proud of herself.

"Emojis, oh I know, I'll never forget the day you sent me the one with tears of joy for the first time. I almost faceplanted into a skyscraper." Kara chuckles at the memory.

"That's on yourself for texting while flying." Lena teases her.

They laugh and just like that the tension is lifted off Kara's shoulders.

Kara suddenly looks up again, clearly deep in thought.

"What is it?" Lena asks curiously.

"Why don't you ask him?" Kara suggests and opens her mouth again to add something else when Lena just blankly stares at her. "Adam. I'm sure he'd love to go."

"Oh, I wouldn't want to keep him away from his job." Lena replies. She has thought about asking him, knowing that he'll drop everything and say yes in a heartbeat. But he truly loves his job at the Institute and it would feel wrong to take him away from it.

"Just think about it? I'm sure he wouldn't mind." Kara tries, knowing very well how hard it is to change Lena's mind. Lena can see the genuine worry in her eyes. Seeing how much she cares warms her heart in a way she isn’t quite used to.

Lena doesn't reply, instead she leans forward to capture Kara's lips with hers.

* * *

“What do you remember about Bray, mom?” Lena asks carefully. Alodie puts her now empty plate back on the table and turns to look at Lena.

“Cliffs.” Is what she says and Lena and Adam turn to look at each other with matching smiles. This is really promising.

“I can’t wait to see them.” Lena smiles. She’s seen pictures online and she’s already charmed by the city’s beauty.

“I’m going to miss you two.” Adam sighs. “You promise to keep me updated, right?”

Lena’s quiet for a moment. It’s clear that Adam cares a lot about Alodie and vice-versa. And he knows her better than anyone else.

“Adam? Would you like to join us?” Lena suddenly breaks the silence.

“What?” Adam looks confused.

“To Ireland. I know you have to work, so I understand if you have to decline.”

“Are you serious?! I would love to!” Adam beams. “But aren’t you going with your girlfriend?”

Lena’s brain short-circuits for a moment.

“Kara is your girlfriend, right? I’m sorry, I swear I’m not willingly reading all those gossip-magazines, but some of the patients just love to discuss celebrity news with me.”

Lena clears her throat and remembers how the English language works.

“Yes- yes she is. And no, she can’t. Catco needs her to stay here in National City.” Lena’s heart is beating so fast. _Kara is my girlfriend!_ “So if you’re able, you’re welcome to join us.”

“Oh! Wow! Okay. I- I think they can miss me for at least a week, maybe longer. I’ve got plenty of vacation days left!” Adam tells her excitedly.

Lena smiles at his enthusiasm. But before she can say anything, the door opens and Supergirl enters the room with a serious expression on her face. Adam stares at the superhero in awe and Lena looks at her with concern.

“Supergirl?”

“Lilian Luthor has been sighted.” Supergirl begins and Lena’s heart drops to the floor. “She’s out of town. I think it’s safe for you to go on yout trip.” Supergirl finishes with a smile, though it’s clear she’s annoyed with herself for still not having captured her.

“That’s great news.” Lena hears herself say, but all she can think about is what Lilian must be planning. _What the hell is she up to?_

* * *

Kara is holding some kind of watch. It's silver and sleek, and it looks like any other watch at first glance, but when Lena studies it closer, a familiar Kryptonian symbol catches her eye. A small button pokes out in the middle.

"Just press the button and I'll be there in a minute."

"It'll take you a minute to fly to Ireland?"

"Approximately, yeah." Kara says casually, looking awfully pleased with herself.

Lena stares back at her and blinks.

"I don't know why I'm still surprised." Lena mumbles.

Kara grins at her and then sighs.

"I wish I could go with you."

"The city needs its superhero." Lena reminds her. And the city really does, especially now.

"I know." Kara replies. "But I need you."

That earns her an arched eyebrow, Lena's lips curl up.

"Wouldn't it be awfully villainous of me to keep Supergirl all to myself?"

"I don't see anything wrong with that." Kara says innocently enough, though Lena can't deny the sudden warmth she feels. Lena's eyes drop to Kara's lips and she-.

"Miss Luthor, Sam Arias is here to see you." It's her assistant, materializing in the door opening.

Kara jumps back a little, surprisingly startled by her sudden appearance.

Lena clears her throat.

"Right, give us five minutes?"

Her assistant nods and turns away, leaving the two alone again.

Lena doesn't hesitate when she steps forward to clash her lips onto Kara's. Kara reacts enthusiastically and smiles into the kiss. Lena’s hands move to cup Kara’s cheeks in a weak attempt to pull the girl of steel even closer. It’s a lot, and for a moment they both forget where they are and what’s about to happen in approximately five minutes.

Lena finally pulls away and smirks at Kara’s flushed state. She presses a chaste kiss onto the blonde’s cheek before returning to her desk.

“I’ll see you tonight?” Lena asks over her shoulder.

“Definitely.” Kara breathes and heads to the door when she hears footsteps approaching.

Lena puts a stack of papers away and clears her desk as much as she can. Her laptop is already secured in her bag and ready to go. She briefly eyes her liquor cabinet, but decides to leave it the way it is. She looks up towards the doorway when she hears a familiar voice.

“Lena Luthor.” It’s Sam Arias, smiling widely at her. _God, she’s missed her._

“Sam.” Lena smiles back and soon enough she’s pulled into a tight, long overdue, hug.

“It’s been too long.” Sam sighs when she lets Lena go. And it really has been.

“How have you been? How’s Ruby?” Lena wonders.

“We’re fine. God, Lena, how are _you_? I heard about what happened. Are you alright?” Sam stares at her with concern.

Lena thinks back to that horrific night. Lex’s death. Without a doubt the worst night of her life, which is honestly saying something, because her life isn’t exactly uneventful. She remembers the look in her brother’s eyes when she pulled the trigger. He’d really though she wouldn’t do it, that she would spare him despite of everything he’s done. He’d thought her to be weak until the moment he realized he wasn’t going to get out of this one. He’d then looked at her with a sense of pride and Lena hates herself for all the times she had craved that exact look from him.

“I’m alright. I’ve- I’ve been doing much better, really. It’s good to see you, Sam.” Lena tells her earnestly.

Sam shoots her a smile before turning her attention to the cleared desk behind her.

“Are you sure about this?”

“Absolutely, I need some time off. And I know you make a fine acting CEO.”

“You flatter me. It’s really good to be back though.” Sam eyes the room and then returns her gaze to Lena. “And how’s your girlfriend doing these days? She looked a bit flushed when I passed her in the hallway.” She adds with a teasing smile.

Lena fights the urge roll her eyes at her.

“You know, I won’t take it personally that I had to find out about it from some shitty magazine.” Sam smirks.

“Since when do you read gossip-magazines?” Lena arches an eyebrow at the idea.

“Ruby pointed it out to me. She loves those magazines. Don’t ask me why.” Sam sighs, but doesn’t look too annoyed.

Lena chuckles.

“Paparazzi are relentless. I can’t sit on the same bench as someone else without being linked to them romantically.” Lena huffs.

“But it’s true though, right?”

“Oh yes.” Lena smiles genuinely. “We’re dating.”

“Thank god. Ruby would’ve been devastated.”

* * *

Now that L-Corp is in safe hands, Lena’s almost ready to go. She’s walking down the hallway of the med bay at the D.E.O. when she notices something out of the ordinary. The door to her mother’s room isn’t locked. In fact, the door is wide open. Lena can’t help but hear the voices from inside.

“You’ll take good care of her? Both of them?”

“Y-yes, Supergirl. But I-I don’t think Miss Luthor needs me to watch over her. She’s very brave.”

“Oh, I know she is.” Lena can almost hear the smile in her voice. “Adam, could you give me your phone?”

“Of- of course, Supergirl.” Adam hastily says, followed by a thud and a quick apology.

“There you go. Just text me when you need anything, alright?”

Lena decides she’s done enough eavesdropping and walks through the doorway. Adam looks as if he’s seconds away from fainting, Alodie is sleeping peacefully, and Kara is looking awfully pleased with herself.

“Su-supergirl just gave me her number! Her _phone number_!” Adam exclaims when he spots Lena in the doorway.

“That’s…wonderful, Adam.” Lena has to bite her lip to keep her face as neutral as possible.

Adam stares at his phone and then looks back at Supergirl again, still completely bewildered.

“I- I’m just gonna-.” He points at the doorway and disappears through it, leaving Lena and Kara alone with a sleeping Alodie.

“He’s a huge fan. He just can’t stop talking about you.” Lena chuckles lightly.

“He’s a good kid.” Kara smirks. She looks over her shoulder when she hears movement behind her.

“Lena?” It’s Alodie, now very much awake in her bed.

“Hello mom.” Lena greets her softly.

Alodie is staring at Supergirl with an unreadable expression.

“I’ll just- I’m going to get Kara. Nice to see you again Miss Byrne!” Supergirl says before speeding through the doorway. Lena facepalms inwardly when Kara comes walking through the door merely twenty seconds later. _How on earth did she ever fall for this?_

“Lena! Hey there, Miss Byrne.” Kara smiles brightly.

Alodie smiles up at her.

“I hope you have a nice trip, Miss Byrne.” Kara says politly.

“Oh, please call me Alodie, dear. And thank you sweetheart.” She winks at her.

Lena chuckles and grabs Kara’s wrist.

“Come.”

“Bye, Alodie!” Kara waves just before Lena closes the door behind them.

Lena smiles when Kara’s lips find hers instantly.

“I’m going to miss you.” Kara whispers against her lips.

* * *

"This is amazing. Did you really design this?" Adam takes in the interior of the private jet.

"Yes. It was definitely one of my favourite side projects." Lena replies absentmindly as she checks the route on the tablet connected to her plane.

"Side projects." Adam mumbles in awe and glances at Alodie, who's silently looking through the window and enjoying the impressive view.

"Supergirl."

"What did you say, mom?" Lena glances up from her tablet. She follows Alodie's gaze through the window and immediately notices the unmistakable streaks of red and blue next to them in the air.

Lena doesn't even try to pretend to be annoyed, an adoring smile tugs on her lips.

* * *

They've been in the air for at least four hours when Adam suggests watching something to pass the time. Lena presses a button to reveal the hidden television screen and Adam gasps in surprise. She hands him the remote to let him decide what to watch and he ironically settles on a documentary about Superman.

"They talk about him as if he's the strongest person in the universe when Supergirl is right there! She's literally stronger and faster than him!" Adam huffs and glares at the screen.

"Is she?" Lena asks with an amused smile.

"Definitely! This blogger has compared them a couple of times and Supergirl always wins."

"A blogger?" Lena arches her eyebrows.

"Yeah, Supergirl has a massive fanbase. Some people blog about every fight and public appearance." Adam explains and Lena secretly takes a mental note.

* * *

When Lena's tablet tells her they're nearing their destination, she can't do anything to calm her nerves. They aren't just going to explore Alodie's roots, they're also going to explore her own. And that somehow feels frightening and exciting at the same time.

"Lena. Are you alright, dear?" Her mother asks and Lena feels like she's about to burst into tears. Her mother has made such incredible progress.

"Yes." Lena croaks out, trying to sound strong.

Alodie reaches out to put her hand on Lena's in an attempt to comfort her. It's heartwarming and...safe.

The automatic voice of the jet tells them they're going to land in approximately ten minutes. Adam abandons the TV and stares at Ireland's landscape through the plane window.

"So what's next? Do we call them first or do we just drive to their home?" Adam wonders out loud.

Lena clears her throat before she starts talking.

"Well, it's too risky to contact them, so we'll just have to pay them a surprise visit."

And that's what they do. They rent a nice car, not too nice, because they don't want to stand out, and drive to their destination. Thankfully, the sky is clear enough to see the incredible view of the cliffs properly. They stare at it in silence, possibly still a bit numbed down due to the jetlag and absolutely enchanted by the beauty of their surroundings. Alodie is taking it all in with a smile.

When they arrive at the farm, Lena's heart is about to burst out her chest. This is real. This is really happening.

Lena parks the car and leaves the vehicle. "Just stay put, alright? I'll let them know who we are."

She closes the car door and walks up the pathway leading to the door. Before she reaches the doorbell, the door swings open to reveal a young man. He appears to be a few years younger than Lena. His eyes are just a shade lighter than her own, while his hair is a tad bit darker.

He's about to say something when he cuts himself off. Instead, he stares at Lena with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Hello." Lena tries a bit awkwardly.

The man blinks at her.

"You look so much like-." He shakes his head at the outrageous idea.

"My name is Lena. I believe we're related." She clarifies casually, despite the overwhelming nerves rushing through her body.

"Lena?" He gasps, his eyes widening. "Give me one minute?"

Lena nods and watches him turning away from the door and walking back inside. She looks back towards the car to see Adam giving her an encouraging thumbs up.

Suddenly, a woman appears in the door opening. Lena recognizes her from the photo and realizes she's Alodie's sister, Ciara. And her aunt.

"It's you." Is all Ciara says before wrapping her arms around her. Lena is a bit taken aback, but then relaxes in the woman's embrace.

"I'm so sorry, Lena. God. We didn't know how to contact you. They didn't tell us where you were. They only told us your mother died in a tragic accident." Ciara sniffs and lets her go.

"She didn't die." Lena tells her tearfully.

"What do you mean?" Ciara frowns.

Lena turns towards the car and signals her travel companions to get out.

Ciara stares at the action with wide eyes.

"O-oh my god, Alodie?!" Ciara rushes forward when she catches sight of her.

Lena quickly joins them.

Alodie looks at Ciara in wonder, but doesn't seem to recognize her immediately.

"Conor! Get your grandmother!" Ciara shouts back to the house. She returns her gaze to her sister and frowns a little at the lack of reaction.

"Ciara." Lena begins quietly. "She suffered a head injury and lost a lot of memories."

"Oh god." Ciara whispers.

Suddenly, a strangled cry is heard from the doorway as an elderly woman appears. Siobhan.

"Alodie?!"

Siobhan rushes down the pathway to join her two daughters.

"Is that really you?"

"Mam, she might not-" Ciara tries, but stops talking when Alodie suddenly breaks down crying. Siobhan embraces her immediately in an attempt to calm her down. She relaxes in the hug and her cries eventually die down.

Ciara puts a comforting hand on her sister's shoulder and sighs sadly.

Conor approaches the scene carefully.

"So I guess we're cousins, aye?" He says a bit dryly, but effectively breaks the ice.

Lena chuckles at the absurdity of it all.

"Do you have a brother?" Conor asks all of a sudden and Lena freezes up completely. But before Lena slips down a spiral, she realizes Conor is observing Adam.

"Hey there, I'm just the family nurse." Adam steps forward to shake his hand. "The name's Adam."

"Conor." He replies with an arched eyebrow. Conor looks at his relatives again before returning his gaze to Lena.

"Welcome to the family, I guess."

* * *

Dinner is an interesting event. Lena spends it silently observing the people around the table. Her family. Alodie and Siobhan are quietly talking on the other end of the table and Adam and Conor seem to get along very well as they're ranking the world's superheroes. Lena's not entirely sure if Bananaman really exists or if they made him up, either way, it's definitely entertaining.

"Lena?" She looks up at the sudden mention of her name.

Ciara is looking at her with a kind smile.

"What do you do?"

Lena blinks.

"I'm an engineer." Lena decides to settle on.

"Lena is the C.E.O. of a huge company in National City." Adam chimes in and the room grows tired.

All eyes are on her now.

"It's not that interesting, really. I sit in my office all day."

"Lena's been working on VR lenses for dementia and amnesia treatments."

"Adam." Lena glares at him. "I can hardly take credit for that."

"They wouldn't have continued with the treatments if you hadn't improved them significantly." Adam goes on.

"Is that true, Lena? That's incredible." Siobhan sounds impressed. The others continue to stare at her with genuine interest.

Lena is overwhelmed. She has always told herself that she doesn't need validation from others. The Luthors weren't particularly big on praising hard work or good results, no, words like "I'm proud of you" or even a simple "good job" are still a bit foreign to her.

Sensing Lena's discomfort, they settle on a different subject. By the time Lena's finished her plate, her eyes are struggling to keep themselves open.

The farmhouse isn't as large as her penthouse in National City, but it has plenty of spare rooms. Just not enough for the three of them. Thankfully, Adam is fine with rooming with Conor. Alodie gets the larger room next to her sister's and Lena's sleeping in the smaller room on the other side of the hallway.

While Lena is absolutely exhausted, she just can't shut her mind off. She throws her bag onto the floor and fishes her phone out of her pocket.

**Kara 09:21 PM**

_Hey! Everything alright over there? Let me know when you arrive?_

**Lena 00:34 AM**

_I just had dinner with my family. It was great._

Lena's fingers have barely left her phone's keyboard when it notifies her of an incoming call.

"Kara, you didn't have to call."

"I wanted to hear your voice. How did everything go?" Kara wonders genuinely.

Lena sits down onto the mattress and fills her in. They talk until her racing mind calms down completely and her eyes fall shut.

* * *

She's awoken by the loud screech of a rooster and the harsh sunlight onto her face. Lena sighs and moves until her neck is in a much more comfortable position. Her dead phone is lying next to her on the mattress.

Lena sits upright and admires the view through the window. It's a sunny day without a sign of a single cloud touching the sky.

She grabs her charger and plugs it into the wall. After a much needed shower and applying a new shade of lipstick, she descends the stairs and enters the kitchen.

"Good morning Lena."

"Morning. Where are the others?" Lena looks around the empty space.

"They're off doing some work at the farm. You're welcome to join them, but I'm sure you're still tired." Siobhan smiles. "Drink your tea, dear."

Lena grabs the warm cup from the counter and shoots her a thankful smile.

She cradles it and lets the steam warm her face.

"You look so much like her." Siobhan suddenly breaks the comfortable silence.

When Lena looks up at her again, she's met with an intense gaze from the elderly woman. She isn't sure what to say.

"She was always so adventurous, I could barely keep her still." Siobhan pauses, lost in old memories. "I was so afraid she wouldn't come home one day."

Lena swallows thickly.

"I'm so glad you found her." Siobhan adds, sending her a teary smile.

"I hope being here will help her." Lena puts her tea down on the counter. "It's- it's hard to say how much she remembers. I keep calling her 'mom', but I don't even know if she really understands that I'm her daughter."

Siobhan reaches forward to put her hand on Lena's.

"I'm sure she does, deep down." She squeezes her hand gently. "She was overjoyed when she had you. You were her everything." She sighs deeply and her eyes grow dark. "I didn't just lose my daughter that day, you know. I also lost my granddaughter."

Lena tries not to let her emotions get the better of her, but the tears fall anyway. She fails to put her well-practiced mask back on.

"Oh honey." Her grandmother says as she wraps her in a comforting hug.

Lena sobs into the woman's shoulder. She should feel ashamed, weak even, for letting herself go like this. Lilian's taunting voice is echoing through her mind.

Knowing what she's missed out on, the childhood she could've had, it feels like a dagger in her heart.

* * *

Lena's sitting on the couch in the living room, enjoying the easy conversation. It’s tea-time, so everyone sits around the living room with a steaming cup and a tasty biscuit.

"Have you bought the snacks, love?" Siobhan exclaims from the kitchen.

"Yeah! I put them all in the cupboard!" Conor yells back.

Lena can hear her grandmother moving around in the kitchen and pulling cupboards and drawers open.

"You forgot to get pringles!" Siobhan shouts after a moment.

Conor groans and sinks further into the couch.

Siobhan enters the living room and stares at her grandson expectantly.

"Alright, alright, guess I'll go buy some pringles." Conor sighs dramatically.

"Do you need any help?" Lena asks. She wouldn't mind getting some fresh air.

"Sure." He grins in reply.

And then they're sitting in the family's old jeep, on their way to the nearest Tesco.

"So why are those pringles so important?" Lena has to ask.

Conor laughs lightly as he turns the wheel.

"It's basically a tradition. It wouldn't be Eurovision night without a ridiculous amount of snacks." Conor rolls his eyes dramatically.

"Eurovision night?" Lena arches her eyebrows.

Conor turns his head to stare at her in silence.

"The road." Lena reminds him anxiously.

He quickly returns his gaze on the road again and pulls into the parking lot behind the supermarket. The car comes to a halt and the engine shuts off, leaving the two in silence.

"You've never seen Eurovision?" Conor asks in disbelief.

"It's a talent show, isn't it?" Lena vaguely recalls hearing something about how ABBA got famous.

Conor is baffled for a moment.

"I totally forgot you're from America for some reason. Eurovision is not a talent show, it's a whole experience, really. It's become somewhat of a tradition, to sit down and watch it with the whole family." Conor chuckles. "Did you know that Ireland is the most successful country at the contest? We've won seven times." He adds proudly.

Lena isn't sure what she expected to learn about the country she's from, but this isn't quite it.

“Have you ever been to the show?” Lena wonders.

“No, sadly the tickets are outrageously expensive and we haven’t hosted the contest in twenty-five years. I would absolutely love to go one day though, it’s like…” Conor suddenly pauses, averting his eyes.

“It’s like what?” Lena asks, curious about his sudden odd behaviour.

“It’s basically like gay pride, but without the actual parade.” And just like that, Lena understands why he tensed up momentarily.

_Oh._

Lena grins.

“I don’t think it’s something _I_ would particularly enjoy, but I’m certain my girlfriend Kara would love that.”

It takes a moment for her words to sink in, but when they do, Conor quickly turns his head and stares at her. Lena smirks at the dumbfounded expression on his face.

“And here I was thinking _I’m_ the gay cousin.” Conor says eventually and Lena laughs loudly.

* * *

“So let me get this straight. This singer is representing Ukraine, but their song is in German?”

“Partly, yeah.” Conor replies, not taking his eyes off the screen.

Lena blinks at him.

“It’s best not to question it, dear.” Her grandmother shoots her a knowing smile.

Lena returns her gaze to the participant on the screen. It takes a moment for her brain to catch up with what her eyes are seeing.

The singer on the screen is wearing an outrageously shiny outfit with a matching hat that’s shaped like a star. Lena can say, with all honesty, that she’s never seen anything like it. The background dancers are something else entirely. They’re both dressed up in matching silver outfits that vaguely remind Lena of aluminium foil, and their dance routine mostly consists out of questionable arm movements. And the song... Lena isn't sure what genre this type of music even belongs to and at this point she isn't sure she wants to find out.

"This is the best thing I've ever seen." Adam is staring at the screen with fascination. Alodie, sitting next to him, is having a good time as well, judging by the twinkle in her eyes.

When the next act is announced in a short promo video, Lena blinks at the television in disbelief. Australia.

“Did that really say Australia?”

“Yup.” Conor replies as a matter of fact.

“We adopted Australia a few years back. Their songs aren’t bad.”

“They do take it way too seriously though. At least this year they sent a clown.” Conor adds casually.

Before Lena can fully process that sentence, an actual blue haired clown walks on stage and sings the first note of her dramatic ballad.

“Ugh, a ballad.” Ciara sighs.

"She's got a nice voice, doesn't she?” Lena frowns.

“Yeah, but nobody likes ballads. They’re a no-go.” Conor complains.

And then, finally, it’s Ireland’s turn. Everybody sits up straighter and stares at the screen in anticipation.

A blonde woman starts singing a beautiful ballad. The colours on the screen behind her are almost hypnotizing, lighting up to match with the lyrics. Everyone in the room is holding their breath in anticipation and when the lady finally hits that particularly high note, everyone either claps or cheers. It grows into full-blown yells of excitement by the end and Lena is absolutely perplexed.

“Didn’t you just say ballads are a no-go?”

Everyone in the room turns to look at her.

“You’re skating on real thin ice, Lena.” Ciara deadpans and Lena isn't too sure how serious she actually is.

* * *

Apparently, voting takes up the majority of the entire show. It's well passed 1 AM when Lena settles on top of her mattress. Ireland ended up in eleventh place, much to the disbelief of everyone in the room. Conor hadn't been lying, it truly was an experience.

Lena closes her eyes and is about to let the darkness carry her away, when she feels a sudden breeze against her skin. Her eyes flutter open and slowly focus on the figure standing next to the window. The figure is wearing a cape.

"Kara?" Lena whispers in disbelief. _Did she drink too much wine?_

"You're okay." Kara breathes out in relief. Her eyes stay glued to Lena's face, looking for any sign of discomfort.

Lena sits up and frowns.

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"I- I may have overreacted a bit when I couldn't get ahold of you. Did you- did you turn your phone off?"

Lena glances towards her nightstand and realizes her phone is still connected to its charger. Shit.

"I didn't realise."

"It's alright. You've got the watch, right?" Kara smiles, looking a whole lot calmer.

"Of course." Lena reassures her.

"Awesome." Kara looks at her as Lena lets out a long yawn. "You should get some rest. I'm going back home."

Kara is about to turn towards the window, when Lena's exhausted voice sounds through the room.

"Stay." She whispers so quietly, anyone besides a Kryptonian wouldn't have heard her.

Kara turns to look at her again, a bit unsure.

"If they need you, they can call you, right?" Lena goes on and Kara eventually nods in reply. She looks back towards the window and instead of climbing through it, she closes it.

"I think Alex wouldn't mind if I stay here for a few minutes. At least until you fall asleep." Kara smiles warmly.

Lena looks pleased and lifts the covers of her bed, waiting for Kara to get the hint and slip in. Kara takes off her boots and hangs her cape over the frame of the bed before slipping under the covers.

She turns to her side to face Lena.

"Hey."

"Hello yourself." Lena smirks.

"I missed you." Kara breathes. She reaches out to touch Lena's cheek as if she can't quite believe she's lying next to her.

Lena leans into the touch and closes her eyes.

Kara boldly pulls Lena closer and allows her to rest her head onto her shoulder. She's out within a minute.

* * *

When Lena wakes up in an empty bed, she can’t help but feel a bit disappointed. With a sigh, she drags herself into the bathroom and gets ready for the day.

“Morning, sweetheart.” Siobhan greets her again, this time not alone. Alodie and Ciara both shoot her a smile, while Conor and Adam seem to be deep into conversation on the other side of the table.

“Good morning.” Lena greets them. She thanks her grandma when she’s handed a cup of coffee and looks towards the boys.

“Adam? Can I talk to you for a moment?” She asks quietly.

“Of course.” Adam points towards the empty chair in front of him.

“Should I..?” Conor moves to stand up, but Lena shakes her head.

“You don’t have to, I don’t mind. You could help, actually.” Lena realizes.

Adam stares at her expectantly as she sits down.

“Right, it’s about my mother, obviously. Have you noticed any progress?”

Adam looks over at Alodie before returning his gaze to Lena.

“Not really. I mean, sometimes it’s like she knows exactly who everyone is, but then she gets this look in her eyes…” Adam sighs.

Lena nods thoughtfully.

“I think it’s time to visit some of the places she used to go to. Her old school, the cliffs, a pub…” She thinks out loud.

“Or you could start with looking through old photo albums?” Conor suggests a bit dryly.

Lena’s brain glitches for a moment.

“Right, that’s a brilliant idea, actually. Why on earth didn’t I think of that.” Lena sighs. Though, she knows why. The Luthors weren’t exactly the type of family to take photos and proudly collect them in an album. Lionel would rather pay for a painter to get a ‘traditional painting’ done to obnoxiously display on the wall instead.

“I’ve got my smart moments.” Conor smirks at the two.

“Guess being smart runs in the family.” Adam jokes.

“So does something else.” Conor teases and Lena chokes on her coffee.

* * *

Siobhan brings out a huge stack of photo albums from the attic. Conor is visibly cringing at the prospect of seeing old pictures of himself.

“Oh please, you were such a cute baby.” His mother tells him when she notices his lack of enthusiasm. He sinks deeper into the couch.

Lena’s sitting in between her mother and her aunt when she’s handed one of the thicker photo albums. A small card with her name on it is taped to the open page.

“That’s your birth announcement card.” Siobhan taps on the page with her finger. “I’ve kept them all.”

_LENA BYRNE_

_24/10/1993_

_With love, kisses, hugs, and best wishes._

_Welcome to the world._

“We didn’t know much about your father. He wasn’t really, officially, in the picture.” Siobhan looks grim. “We do know that he already had a family in the States, which is why your mother broke it off.”

Lena looks up at that.

“She did?” Lena frowns.

“Yes, she wanted to move back to Ireland with you. In 1997.”

Lena feels an overwhelming sadness settle inside her heart.

“And when she didn’t come back…” Siobhan tries to keep her emotions in check. “We didn’t even know the guy’s last name. All we knew was that they were at some holiday resort and that Alodie was involved in a horrific accident. They sent us a letter, telling us she’d died and that you were in safe hands.”

Lena clenches her jaw.

Suddenly, a soft hand tenderly touches her jawline. Alodie is staring at her with so much love, it’s almost overwhelming.

“Lena.” Alodie looks at her with a warm smile and something tells Lena that she truly does know. She knows that Lena is her daughter.

“Mom.” Her eyes are welling up and her throat feels too tight.

She’s pulled into a warm hug and all she can do is cry as her mother strokes her back. Her embrace is everything Lilian lacked. Warmth, safety, familiarity, love…

"I love you." Alodie whispers against her hair and Lena's heart is about to burst.

Her mother pulls away a little to properly look at her.

"Are you alright?" She asks and all Lena can really do is nod.

Alodie turns a page of the album on Lena's lap and smiles brightly.

"You were so small." She points towards a picture of a baby, proudly held by her younger self.

Lena is speechless, she's never seen baby photos of herself before. It never really occurred to her that they exist at all.

Another picture shows her younger self lying in a crib, almost too tiny for her large blanket.

"You were born three weeks early." Siobhan tells her, sounding emotional.

"I was?" Lena sounds hoarse.

"You had to stay in the hospital for a while. It was nerve wrecking for us all." Ciara chimes in.

"You were adorable." Conor grins at the picture.

"Just wait until we get to _your_ baby photos." Ciara grabs another album from the pile and Conor groans.

* * *

Lena sends Kelly an email about her mother's progress. She can barely contain the happiness she feels. With absolute certainty she can say that she's never been this happy before.

Lena closes her laptop and fishes her phone out of her pocket. She presses on Kara's name and hits dial. The dialing tone sounds five times when Lena suddenly feels a rush of wind from behind her. She cancels the call and turns around with a smug smile.

"You called?" Kara smiles, not in the slightest looking as if she just travelled across an entire ocean.

"Isn't Alex going to be mad?" Lena crosses her arms and chuckles but Kara just shrugs.

"What she doesn't know won't hurt her."

Lena finds that she just can't stop smiling.

"How was your day?" Kara asks as she steps closer.

"Amazing." Lena breathes. "She really knows who I am, Kara. I- I have my mother back." She pauses. She still can't believe it. "And all those baby photos, _my_ baby photos. This all just- it all seems too good to be true?"

"You deserve all the good things that are happening right now. Embrace them." Kara says sincerely.

Lena lets out a shaky sigh as she leans forward to close the distance and capture Kara's lips with her own. Her hands find their own way towards Kara's warm cheeks and she strokes the skin with her thumbs. Before she knows it, Lena's slowly pushed backwards until her back hits the wall and her neck is attacked with wet kisses. Her head falls backward a little, granting her more space. Lena groans at the sensation. They move frantically, both too wrapped up in the moment. Almost too wrapped up to hear the creaking sound of the bedroom door.

Kara pulls away a little and frowns at the sight of the open door.

"What is it?" Lena breathes, her gaze falling down towards Kara's lips again.

"I swear that door was closed when I got here."

Lena looks over Kara's shoulder and huffs.

"Well, _someone_ left the window open when they arrived." Lena says pointedly. "It's probably just the wind."

Lena moves out of Kara's arms to close the door before walking over to the window to secure its lock. Kara's behind her in a flash, kissing the back of her neck and Lena closes her eyes. She promptly turns around to reclaim her lips.

The kiss grows deeper and Kara's hand slips underneath Lena's shirt.

"Wait." Lena whispers against her lips.

Kara pulls away immediately.

"Are you okay?" She looks at her with concern.

"Yes, I'm more than okay. It's just- my grandmother is sleeping on the other side of the hallway." Lena sighs deeply.

"Oh. Right." Kara's eyes widen.

"And the bed frame creaks obnoxiously loud. I'd rather not scar my entire family for life." Lena winks at her and Kara chokes on nothing. "I mean we don't have to use the bed, obviously-." Lena adds and smirks at the deepening blush she's witnessing.

Lena laughs and looks at Kara adoringly.

“How are things back home?” Lena softly asks after a moment of silence. She decides on a different subject altogether, before things escalate.

Kara sighs deeply.

“The same. It’s been awfully quiet, actually. Still no sign of Lilian. It’s almost like she vanished completely.” She frowns.

Lena puts her hand on Kara’s bicep.

“If anyone can find her it’s you. Don’t give up.” Lena strokes the material of her suit.

Kara suddenly freezes and reaches for her ear.

“I’m sorry. I have to go.” Kara says apologetically and kisses her one last time before swiftly opening the window and disappearing into the night.

* * *

Adam keeps glaring at her. At first, Lena figured he'd just had a rough night, which is understandable considering the rooster's loud wake up calls.

But his anger isn't directed towards a farm animal, Lena specifically seems to be on the receiving end of his death glares.

"Adam, are you alright?" Lena tries when it's just the two of them left in the kitchen.

"Fine." Adam doesn't even spare her a glance.

Lena raises her eyebrows, unsure what to make of his odd behaviour. She's trying to think of a subject that will surely cheer him up. Of course.

"What's that Supergirl blog called again? I'd like to look it up later." Lena tries, but apparently that was the wrong thing to say as Adam's glare only grows deadlier.

"Supergirl." Adam almost hisses and Lena is absolutely baffled.

"Adam? Did something happen?" Lena wonders worriedly.

Adam huffs and puts his plate down in the sink before promptly leaving the kitchen. Lena just watches him go with confusion.

* * *

The cliffs are absolutely stunning. The water beneath is rough and relentless as it hits the rocks. It's clear and bright out with the blue sky stretching over the horizon. It's a perfect day to admire the view.

They decided to take the old jeep. She sat cramped up in the back, sandwiched between her mother and her grandmother. Conor was driving and a sour looking Adam accompanied him in the passenger's seat.

Ciara decided to stay at the farm to get some work done, because the farm animals aren't going to feed themselves.

"What do you think?" Conor asks smugly.

"It's absolutely stunning." Lena has to shout a little to make herself heard over the ever-present wind.

"What's up with him?" Conor wonders.

Lena follows his gaze to see Adam still leaning against the jeep and not looking impressed by the view in the slightest.

"No idea. He's been like this all day."

"Did you talk to him last night?"

"No, why?" Lena frowns.

Conor turns his head to look at the rough water in front of them again.

"Well, he said he wanted to talk to you, so he left to see you. But when he came back he was awfully quiet. I thought you two had gotten into a fight or something."

Lena closes her eyes and sighs.

"What time was that?"

"Pretty late. The rest had already gone to bed."

_Shit._

_The open bedroom door..._

_Did he-._

"I- I'll talk to him." Lena reassures him, trying to ignore the panic she feels.

Lena moves away and touches the watch in her pocket. Her thumb lingers before finally pressing the button.

Lena looks back towards Adam, trying to catch his gaze, but to no avail.

She takes a deep breath and walks back to the car.

"Nice view, isn't it?" Lena tries.

"I guess."

Lena sighs sadly.

"Adam, what's going on? You know you can talk to me. You can trust me."

Adam stares at her in disbelief.

"Trust you? After you-." The anger in his eyes is apparent.

"After I what?" Lena holds her breath.

"I- I saw you last night. With Supergirl." Adam clenches his fist.

"How can you do that to Kara?" Adam asks sharply.

"Adam, I can explain. It's not- ."

"What? It wasn't what it looked like? Please, I'm not a genius, but I'm not that dumb." Adam looks away.

"I know you're not." Lena sighs. Suddenly, she notices someone hovering in the air. Thank god.

"Adam?" Supergirl tries when she descends. She lands just behind the jeep, away from any peering eyes.

Adam's face lights up momentarily before the light in his eyes dims again. He pushes himself off the car and turns to face the superhero.

"What do you want? Haven't you done enough?" He huffs.

"Adam, I- I don't know what you saw, but-."

"I think you were about to take a bite from her neck if I recall correctly." Adam shoots back.

Lena closes her eyes. This is bad. She quickly joins Supergirl's side.

"Right.." Kara sighs deeply as if she's mentally preparing for something. "Adam. I- I understand why you're angry, cheating is a horrible thing to do. But I swear nobody is cheating on anyone here. There's- there's more to it."

"Supergirl." Lena warns her. Is she going to-.

"No, let me." She lowers her voice, only for Lena to hear. "You two have become such good friends, I'm not going to be the one to ruin that."

Adam stares at them with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Adam, I think you're very bright and kind. I know you're selfless and always available if anyone needs help. That's why I know my secret will be in safe hands." Supergirl says sincerely.

Adam frowns and looks as if he's about to comment.

A part of Lena desperately wants to jump in and give Kara another way out. Polyamory is a totally valid explanation. And what about open relationships? Or a sudden break-up? But there's another part of her that's absolutely sick and tired of lying. A part of her that knows how much harm comes from secrets and lies. And that part is winning. So she lets her say it.

"I'm Kara Danvers." Supergirl states quietly.

Adam just keeps staring at her as if the words aren't quite landing.

"What?"

Kara silently takes her glasses out of an invisible pocket and slowly slides them on. The expression on Adam's face would've been hysterical if the moment hadn't been so tense.

"Oh." Adam's eyes widen. "Oh my god."

Kara pockets her glasses again and carefully studies his reaction. Adam turns to Lena in shock.

"You weren't cheating on your girlfriend, because she IS your girlfriend. Oh my god, you're dating Supergirl!" He exclaims a bit loudly, but thankfully nobody is within earshot.

"Yes, I am. But Adam, you have to realise-."

"I can't tell anyone. I know how secret identities work, though I've never known one myself before!" Adam is so excited, it's almost contagious. "Don't worry, Kara. Your secret's safe with me. Scout's honour."

Lena can't help but chuckle at that.

"Thank you, Adam." Kara beams before turning towards Lena. "I have to go now. I'm actually not allowed to come here anymore." She sighs.

"Why?" Lena frowns.

"I had a pretty big fight with Alex yesterday." Kara says sadly. "So, no more surprise visits I'm afraid."

Lena automatically grabs her hand.

"You'll catch her soon enough. Then everything can go back to normal." Lena reassures her, squeezing her hand a bit. She can't wait to finally see Lilian behind bars.

* * *

It's been a week since they arrived. It's only been a week, but Lena finds that she's already sucked into a new daily routine. It feels familiar, as if she's been doing it for years. And she's not complaining.

It's a beautiful morning and Lena decides to join Conor on his way to the chicken pen. There's something remarkably peaceful about collecting eggs, Lena has to admit. It's a lovely change from those endless business meetings back at L-Corp.

"So, tell me about your girlfriend?" Conor breaks the comfortable silence as he refills the chickens' water bowl.

"Her name is Kara. She's a reporter." Lena smiles.

"Cool. Do you really think she'd enjoy watching Eurovision?" Conor tries to pet a chicken but it shoots away. Lena chuckles at the chicken's frantic movements.

"Oh, definitely. Now that I think about it, Kara and Eurovision might actually be a very dangerous combination." Lena laughs, she can already picture Kara belting along to dramatic ballads.

“She’s more than welcome to join us next year. I’d love to meet her.”

Lena smiles at the idea of Kara meeting her family. Though, there’s still a lingering fear that just won’t leave her alone.

“How did they take it when you came out?” Lena asks quietly.

Conor throws some leftovers on the ground and is instantly circled by the chickens. He walks through the sea of fowl and stops just before Lena, who’s patiently awaiting his answer on the other side of the low wired fence.

“My mum was great when I told her. But my dad…” Conor sighs deeply and rests his forearms on the fence. “We didn’t talk for years. My parents separated when I was quite young. And I was never really close to my dad, but it still hurt, you know?”

“You deserve better than that.” Lena comments sorrowfully. “Have you spoken to him recently?”

Conor turns his head to stare at the chickens. Lena envies how unbothered they are by the outside world.

“The last time I saw him was in the hospital right before his death.” He finishes.

His words hit her hard. She’s taken back to the year of her own father’s death. The year she lost the last remnants of love she received from her family. He wasn’t a great father, not in the slightest, but he never once alienated her or made her feel like she isn’t supposed to exist.

She can only imagine how hard it must’ve been for Conor. When death comes, it takes all promises and second chances with it.

One look into her cousin’s eyes tells her just how much it still hurts him. Silently, Lena wraps her arms around his slightly shaking frame. The fence is a bit awkwardly sandwiched between the two, but Lena isn’t bothered.

They stand there for a while, accompanied by the surprisingly relaxing clucking sounds of the chickens. Lena stares off in the distance, not looking at anything in particular. That is until her eyes land on a lone figure standing on the other side of the property’s fence. They're just standing there, motionlessly, mostly hidden in the shadows.

"Conor?"

"Hmm?" Conor clears his throat and leans back to look at her.

"Who's that over there?" Lena motions with her head, too afraid to point.

Conor turns to look at the shadowy figure and squints with his eyes.

“Oh, that’s Agatha, our neighbour. She’s blind.” He tells her easily.

“Blind? Then why is she staring right at us?” Lena isn’t taking her eyes off the woman. She can just make out her large sunglasses.

Conor frowns but eventually shrugs and continues on feeding the animals.

* * *

Of course, Lena is not going to be able to fully relax without knowing everything about the mystery woman from next door. And there isn’t much to know about her.

Agatha is thirty-six, graduated from Trinity College in Dublin where she studied languages and cultural studies. Her Instagram feed shows a happy woman, with pictures of her getting kissed on the cheek by a man, presumably her boyfriend. They look happy and kind, and not at all like someone who would help Lilian Luthor with her deranged ideas.

Lena shakes her head and wills the absurd idea out of her head. She’s been feeling so happy and light, there’s no more room for her paranoia.

So she forces herself to go on with her day. She replies to Kelly’s email and calls Sam for a quick update on her company’s status. Soon enough, any thoughts of the shaded lady have left her mind completely.

Lena connects the VR lenses to her laptop and waits for her software to start up. She has enough information and images to reconstruct another memory, she’s sure. Ciara even forwarded her a couple of videos of her mother. Videos of birthday parties, holidays, her mother working at the farm…

There’s one video in particular that triggers a memory instantly. Lena’s memory. The video shows Alodie walking into the sea at a beach. She walks further and further, until eventually she disappears out of sight completely, letting the waves engulf her. And then, she reappears again, sweeping her wet hair out of her face and laughing joyfully.

Lena desperately wants to avert her gaze, but she just can’t look away. She keeps seeing the waves and her mother’s head as it disappears into the sea. At least this time she eventually resurfaces.

She flinches when her bedroom door opens. Alodie appears in the doorway, her smile disappearing when she notices Lena’s distress.

“What is it, love?” Alodie sits down on the bed, right beside her.

“Nothing, I’m alright.” Lena croaks out, swallowing thickly.

Alodie looks at the screen and then back at her daughter.

“You can tell me anything. Please know that. I believe we have a couple of years to catch up on.”

Lena breathes shakily.

“Do you remember what happened that day at the lake?”

Alodie is quiet for a moment, deep in thought.

“I vaguely remember being there on holiday. The shore, the lake. The rest is...flashes.” She eventually tells her.

Lena tries to keep her eyes from welling up, but she can feel herself losing that battle. Her quivering bottom lip is giving her away.

“I just- I stood there on the shore and did nothing. I didn’t run, I didn’t scream, I didn’t even cry. I just stood there a-and w-watched.” Lena cries, letting the tears runs freely now. “I’m- I’m so s-sorry.” She sobs, letting out her repressed anger at herself.

“Oh Lena. Sweetheart. It isn’t your fault.” Alodie sighs sadly, embracing her from the side. “I should’ve known better. I should never have gone into the water with waves that high. I’m so sorry you had to witness that.”

Lena lets her head rest on her mother’s shoulder and closes her burning eyes.

“I’m sorry you didn’t have the childhood you deserved.” Her mother adds sorrowfully and Lena sobs into her shoulder. It’s as if a weight is lifted off her shoulders. She realizes how long she has longed for a conversation like this.

* * *

Alodie is remembering more every day. Small details, random events, name of long lost friends… Lena’s set on filling the remaining gaps. Together with Siobhan and Ciara, she compiles a list of highlights consisting of fond memories and important events.

Lena unplugs her device and closes her laptop.

“Are you ready?” Lena asks her mother.

Alodie nods, but suddenly seems to change her mind.

“Wait.” She suddenly says. “I’m in the mood for ABBA.”

Lena laughs, feeling the tension leaving her body immediately. She walks over to the record player on the dresser and picks out “ABBA’s Greatest Hits”. When the needle hits the vinyl and the first notes of Dancing Queen fill the room, Alodie’s smile grows.

Lena opens the tiny box and hands it to her mother, who carefully takes the lenses out and puts them over her eyes. With a reassuring smile and a nod, she lets her know she’s ready for the simulation to begin. Lena hits start.

Her mother sinks back into her chair and suddenly goes rigid.

Lena frowns and quickly checks her tablet for any abnormalities. A gasp leaves her mouth when she notices the giant spike in her mother’s heartrate.

“Mom?” Lena exclaims worriedly.

“End simulation.”

Nothing happens.

“End simulation!” Lena tries again, sounding desperate. When nothing changes, Lena grabs her laptop and opens up her software. Her hands are shaking heavily as she types away.

_A breach…_

_How could she have missed it._

“No, no, no. Please mom, wake up. I’m not losing you again.” Lena whimpers. Her fingers hit the keys as quickly as possible while she tries to locate the breach’s origin.

“Hold on, mom.” Lena sniffles as she waits for the software to process her request.

When she sees the address, she flinches. It’s coming from the neighbour’s house.

Lena touches the watch in her pocket and quickly presses the button. Quickly, she puts her laptop aside and throws the door open. When she arrives downstairs, she’s out of breathe. The living room grows quiet at her arrival.

“Lena?” Conor worries.

“Someone has to stay with my mother. Something- someone is hacking into her lenses. It’s- it’s bad.” Lena tries to explain hurriedly.

“Woah, Lena. Breathe.” Ciara stands up and puts a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“The signal is coming from the neighbours’ house. I- I’m going to investigate.” Lena takes a deep breath before turning towards the door.

“Wait.” Conor exclaims suddenly. He walks over to the fireplace and yanks the displayed riffle off the wall above it. “It’s not only for show.” He shrugs and quickly joins Lena’s side by the door.

“We’ll stay with her. Go! Please, be careful!” Siobhan shouts when they rush outside.

Lena’s filled with adrenaline as she jogs alongside her cousin. The lights in the neighbours’ house are all turned on.

Her heart is wildly pounding in her chest as she approaches the doorstep. She looks at Conor, who gives her a reassuring nod while he adjusts his grip on the riffle, before pushing the door open and stepping inside.

There’s movement coming from the living room. Conor presses his finger against his lips and quietly rounds the corner.

“Don’t move or I’ll shoot!” He exclaims demandingly. Lena quietly joins his side and gasps.

A woman with bright grey eyes is standing in the middle of the room. A pair of sunglasses at her feet. In her rigid hand, she’s holding a large knife.

“Agatha, drop the knife.”

She doesn’t move a finger, in fact, she’s totally rooted to the spot, _rigid_.

“Conor, look at her eyes. She’s not in control. She’s wearing VR lenses.” Lena realizes, staring at the woman in shock.

“Are you telling me VR lenses can control minds?” Conor hisses in disbelief.

“That was before we got rid of the glitch. They should be safe now.” Lena frowns. Her eyes land on the laptop on the small table in front of the television.

Lena slips passed the rigid woman and takes a seat in front of the laptop.

She recognizes the coding pattern right away and makes a few alterations. Suddenly, Agatha snaps out of her rigid state and readjusts her grip on her knife.

“Lena? Conor? What is going on?” Adam’s voice suddenly sounds from the hallway.

“Adam, stay back!” Conor shouts over his shoulder.

He doesn’t listen.

He steps inside the living room just when Agatha throws her knife. Lena’s heart stops beating.

Out of nowhere, a rush of wind fills the house and all Lena can see is red and blue. _Supergirl._

Supergirl is standing right in front of Adam, casually holding the knife between two fingers.

“Sorry, I got held up. Everyone okay?” She quickly scans the room and shoots Lena a reassuring smile. Lena can breathe again.

“She- she’s hacking into my mother’s lenses. I’m trying to get rid of the-.” Lena’s voice falters when somebody else enters the living room, coming from the kitchen.

_No._

“Oh, don’t let me interrupt you, I’m here to enjoy the show.” Lilian Luthor walks over to a chair right next to the couch where Lena’s sitting and nonchalantly sits down.

Lena is speechless and freezes up entirely.

Supergirl jumps in action immediately, but weakly falls to the ground halfway.

“Kryptonite.” She groans as her veins glow a toxic green.

“Why are you here?” Lena glares at her step-mother.

“Why do you think? To finish what I started.” Lilian answers smugly.

“Lena? Just give me the word and I’ll shoot her.” Conor tries to sound brave, though it’s awfully clear how scared he is.

Lena’s childhood flashes before her eyes. The odd duck, the outsider, the bastard child. She never felt welcome or loved. Lex always came first and Lena had grown to accept that, even though it made her feel worthless. His legacy continues to haunt her up until this day. After everything, her biggest fear is still becoming just like him.

"No, don't. She deserves to rot in prison." Lena decides.

"I'd like to see you try. I've always admired your willpower." Lilian says conversationally.

"I'm sure you have." Lena clenches her jaw and returns her gaze to the laptop.

"You better hurry up. You don't want your dear mother to slip into a coma, do you?" Lilian smiles sweetly as if she just asked her if she fancies icecream for dessert.

"What did you do to her?” Lena seethes.

“I merely made my own glitch, a virus if you will. In human form.” Lilian explains easily and smugly eyes the rigid woman in the middle of the room.

Lena swallows thickly and keeps typing rapidly. When Lena finishes another string of code Agatha's arm jerks forward.

"This isn't helping. I need to access the system now!" Lena exclaims desperately.

She is tapping with her fingers onto the hard surface of the laptop when her eyes land on the small Obsidian box on the table in front of her.

"You're not getting away with this." Supergirl hisses, but Lilian just shoots her an amused smile.

"The cops are coming!" Adam chimes in, trying to sound brave.

"Are they? How sweet." Lilian says sarcastically.

Lena's fingers are shaking as she places the lenses onto her eyes. She takes a deep breath and hovers with her index finger over the activation button.

"Lena?" Supergirl calls her name and stares at her with wide eyes.

"Call Winn if I don't make it. He'll know what to do." Lena breathes shakily, but she's determined.

"Lena! You don't know what it will do to you! It might be dangerous!" Supergirl exclaims.

Lilian just looks at her step-daughter with interest.

Lena stares right into Kara's eyes, trying to tell her what she desperately wants to say, without words. I love you.

She hits the button.

* * *

It's pitch black when Lena opens her eyes. She's all too familiar with this place, though something feels very off. The nothingness is claustrophobic and the quietness rings in her ears.

But there's something in the distance, something among the stars.

"Hello?" Lena finally finds her voice again. Experimentally, she takes a step forward and finds that her limbs are responding. She quickly moves forward to the shape in the distance.

"Mom? Is that you?" Lena exclaims into the darkness. Finally, she comes close enough to see what's waiting for her with the stars.

It's her. Her mother. Motionlessly staring into nothingness.

"Mom!" Lena comes to a halt right in front of her. Her mother's eyes focus on her face and stare at her blankly. Lena breathes out in relief.

"It's going to be okay. We just have to wake up." Lena reassures her. _What did Kara do in this situation? She just kept talking, didn’t she?_

"Mom, it's not safe here. This place is messing with your head. We have to get out, okay?" Lena tries again. "Just say the words, you know the ones. Only you can, mom." She adds, trying to keep her voice steady.

Alodie just looks at her as if she's trying to process what's being said to her.

"I can't lose you again, m-mom. Not after everything. I wouldn't be able to cope." Lena takes a sharp breath before continuing. "I need you, mom. Please, wake up."

Alodie blinks and her whole expression changes significantly.

"Lena." She whispers before closing her eyes. "End simulation." And just like that, Alodie disappears right in front of her eyes.

Lena tries to calm her breathing. She's about to close her eyes and say the words herself when she hears something to her right.

It's the woman, Agatha, looking absolutely terrified.

Lena doesn't hesitate when she steps forward to approach the shaking woman.

"Hello?" Lena tries softly.

The woman gasps and turns her head towards the sound of her voice.

"Who's there?" Agatha cries out.

"My name is Lena." She replies carefully.

"Lena who? Do I know you?"

"Lena Byrne." Lena's heart skips a beat. _Saying it feels right._

"Where- where am I? What's going on?" Agatha shudders.

"This is a simulation. It's going to be okay, I'm going to get you out of here, alright?" Lena tries to reassure her.

"H-how?"

"Just repeat the two words I'm about to say. If it works I'm going to-." Lena is cut off when the space around them begins to shake and flicker.

"What- what's going on?" Agatha cries.

"The simulation, it's- I think it's deleting itself." Lena realizes with fear.

"Don't worry. We're going to get out of here. Just repeat the two words I'm going to say, alright?" Lena is filled with adrenaline as she watches the world go black pixel by pixel.

Agatha nods quickly and waits for Lena's words in anticipation.

"End simulation."

* * *

Lena inhales sharply as her eyes shoot open. It takes her a moment to get used to the brightness.

"Lena?" It's Kara, with her glasses and a worried look.

"Kara? Where am I?" Lena blinks and looks around the room when her eyes are able to focus again. Her eyes eventually land on Ciara, Conor, and Adam, quietly observing her from the couch they're sitting on.

_Is this the living room?_

"You're okay, we're at the farm." Kara smiles at her before tears fill her eyes. "Please, don't do that again. It was very brave, but also very stupid."

"I had to save her." Lena states firmly. With her hand, she pushes herself upright on the couch. "Where is she?"

"She's upstairs with Siobhan. A specialist is with them." Ciara tells her.

"A specialist?" Lena arches an eyebrow.

"Kelly is here." Kara explains quietly.

Lena smiles tiredly.

"How are you feeling?" Kara asks worriedly.

"Tired." Lena rubs her eyes clean.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps descending the stairs breaks the silence. Kelly appears in the hallway, smiling at Lena when she notices she's awake.

"Hey there." Kelly approaches her and gives her a quick once-over. "You're both okay. Your mother is sleeping upstairs. You got her out just in time, Lena." Kelly breathes deeply.

"Did Agatha make it out?" Lena worries.

Kelly nods. "She's fine. You saved her life."

Lena doesn't comment on that, she's just glad to hear her plan worked out

"Lilian?" Lena wonders, returning her gaze to her girlfriend.

"A certain Martian helped the cops out. He made sure she's behind bars before he flew home. Wherever that might be." Kara adds quickly. Lena chuckles lightly and closes her eyes in relief _. It's over._

"I'm going to call Alex and fill her in." Kelly excuses herself and disappears into the hallway.

Lena notices how pale Conor and Adam still are. She pushes herself off the couch and gets back on her feet.

“I should probably introduce you.” Lena winces a little when she puts all her weight on her legs again. She waves off Kara’s concern.

Lena clears her throat and turns to face Ciara and Conor.

“This is Kara, my girlfriend.” Lena knows, rationally, that she doesn’t have a reason to be this nervous to say this out loud, but that specific kind of fear always lingers in the back of her mind. _Rejection._

Conor stands up with a bright smile on his face.

“Conor. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Lena hardly talks about anything else.” He winks and holds out his hand to shake Kara’s.

“Shut up.” Lena huffs, though she can’t bring herself to be mad.

“Nice to meet you.” Kara beams and happily shakes his hand.

Ciara slowly joins them, looking at Kara with an expression Lena can’t quite decipher before a smile tugs at her lips.

“Good to see you, Kara. I’m Lena’s aunt.” Ciara leans forward to give her a warm hug. Lena smiles at the display.

“And who’s this lovely lady?” Siobhan wonders when she enters the room, followed by a tired looking Alodie.

“Mom.” Lena breathes and quickly throws her arms around the woman. _She’s okay. She’s alive._

“Sweetheart. Hello again, Kara.” Alodie smiles at the sight of her. And Lena just knows that Alodie understands very well what Kara means to her, it’s a certain look in the woman’s eyes.

“This is Kara. She’s my girlfriend.” Lena says again when she finally lets go of her mother. Siobhan’s smile only widens at her words.

“Welcome to the family, dear.” Her grandmother steps forward to embrace her in a warm hug.

* * *

It’s a year later when Lena and Kara walk up to the farm, hand in hand. Lena chuckles lightly at her girlfriend’s ridiculous outfit. She’s dressed in green from head to toe, her green button-up is even decorated with tiny clovers.

The door is thrown open even before they reach the doorstep.

“They’re here!” Conor shouts over his shoulder. He pulls them both in a hug.

When he catches sight of the private jet behind them, his mouth falls open. “Oh my god, Lena.”

Lena just grins at his reaction.

“Kara, are you already dressed up for tonight? You look great.” Conor eyes her outfit in awe. “It’s going to be so much fun. We were just deciding on what snacks to buy” He adds with a bright smile.

“Actually.” Lena begins and she grabs a small box out of her pocket. She hands it to Conor who stares at it with confusion.

“What is it?”

“Open it.” Lena smirks and watches him slowly unwrap his present. When the paper is discarded of, he only needs to lift the lid to see what’s inside. He gasps loudly and stares at it with wide eyes.

“No. No, you’re kidding me, right? This is a prank.” He looks up at Lena and stares at her in disbelief.

“It’s not a prank.” Lena assures him, chuckling at his reaction.

“What’s going on, Conor?” Ciara wonders, appearing in the door opening.

Soon enough, Alodie and Siobhan join her side as well.

“Lena just handed me tickets to tonight’s finale.” Conor says in disbelief.

“She what?” Siobhan stares at Lena in shock.

“Actually, I’ve got us all VIP tickets. You can join us in the reserved lounge if you like.” Lena clarifies and Conor looks as if he’s about to faint.

“If we leave now, we’ll arrive in Rotterdam in about an hour and a half.” Lena checks her watch and returns her gaze to her speechless family again.

“Oh my god, are you serious?” Conor stares at her in bewilderment.

“Yes, so what do you say?” Lena smirks, raising one eyebrow.

“I think we’d all be fools to decline such an offer. You’re truly a godsend, dear.” Siobhan walks down the pathway and presses a kiss on her granddaughter’s cheek.

“Mom?” Lena looks at her mother.

“I’d love to, sweetheart.” Alodie closes the distance and wraps both her daughter and Kara in a warm hug.

“I’ll just lock up and meet you guys in a couple minutes, yeah?” Ciara yells as she quickly gets back inside.

“Where’s Adam?” Conor wonders when he’s recovered from the shock.

“He’s already waiting in the jet. It’s unlocked.” Lena chuckles as she watches Conor sprint towards the jet.

“Did you two really just fly all the way from America? You must be exhausted.” Alodie realizes with a frown.

“Actually.” Lena pauses and looks at Kara with a soft smile before continuing. “We purchased a house in Bray last week. We’ve been staying there for two days now. We’re not selling our apartment in National City, though, we’ll still live there too.”

“That is incredible, dear!” Alodie starts to sniffle a little. “I’m so happy for you two.” She embraces them again.

“Okay, I’m ready! Let’s go!” Ciara shouts as she slams the door shut.

When they all board the jet, Lena looks around the cabin with tears in her eyes. Kara gently squeezes her hand and gives her a warm smile.

Lena has never felt this happy in her life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, the Eurovision broadcast Lena saw on TV was basically a big mashup of the most iconic acts. Kudos to you if you got the Verka reference lmao.  
> Honestly? I just want to know what Lena would think of Eurovision? I just know that Kara would be 100 percent into it.
> 
> Personally, Eurovision is one of my favourite things in the world. I am literally Conor.
> 
> Also, fun fact, I've been to Bray myself and totally fell in love with its beauty. I visited this incredible estate with stunning gardens, genuinely one of the prettiest places I've ever been to.
> 
> Anyways, I just think Lena deserves the world. 
> 
> I hope you liked this story and the characters I came up with. I'm hereby also adopting Conor.
> 
> I'm a sucker for happy endings byeeee
> 
> xxx

**Author's Note:**

> and? what do you think?
> 
> Adam is my son, okay?
> 
> anyways let me know what you think? thank you for reading xxx


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